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MISSION STUDIES 


A BRIEF HISTORY OF 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS, 


PARTICULARLY OF 


PROTESTANT MISSIONS 

In America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Islands of the Sea. 


BY SARAH STRINGFIELD BUTLER. 


Edited , with an Introduction, 

BY JNO. J. TIGERT, LL.D 


Printed for the Author * / - y 

By the Publishing House of the M. E. Church, South, / C/j 

Barbee & Smith, Agents, Nashville, Tenn. 

1895. 





/03J 


TO THE MEMBERS 

OF THE 

Woman’s Missionary Societies, and of the 
Young People’s and Juvenile Bands, 

THE CONSTITUENCY OF THE 

Woman’s Board of Missions of the Methodist Epis 
copal Church, South, 

ZTbte IDolume te 1fnscrtt>e&, 

WITH THE HOPE THAT BRINGING LOST SOULS 
FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT MAY IN THE FUTURE AS IN 
THE PAST BE THEIR SINGLE AIM AND 
THEIR TRUE INSPIRATION. 


-> 




Copyright, 1895, 




INTRODUCTION. 


It has been a source of real pleasure to me to read 
carefully the proofs of Mrs. Butler’s “ Mission Studies.” 
In so doing I have been impressed with the wide range 
of information embraced in this unpretending but val¬ 
uable volume, and with the painstaking accuracy of 
the author. There can be no vital and fruitful inter¬ 
est in any subject that does not spring out of knowl¬ 
edge. The history of Christian missions is scattered 
about in many books, such as general Church histories, 
biographies of missionaries, and the reports of various 
boards and societies. With the best intentions, many 
inquirers are unable to secure comprehensive and relia¬ 
ble information concerning the work of the Christian 
Church in the conversion of the world. Mrs. Butler 
has now supplied our pastors and the zealous women 
of the auxiliaries of our Woman’s Foreign Missionary 
Board throughout the Church with the very manual 
they need, both for their own edification and for the 
instruction of others. It is a magazine of compact and 
tested ammunition, to be freely used by all the soldiers 
of the militant host. 

In this age of the making of many books, the kindly 
author has not deliberately perpetrated a new book. 

( 3 ) 


4 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Such a deed is rapidly becoming unpardonable. This 
volume is a growth, and the necessary supply of a rec¬ 
ognized need. At the annual meeting of the Woman’s 
Board of Foreign Missions of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, held in Little Rock, Ark., the editor of 
the Woman’s Missionary Advocate was requested to wnite 
a series of uniform lessons to appear monthly in that 
magazine, so highly prized wherever it is known, for 
the use of auxiliaries and other societies. No restric¬ 
tions were imposed upon Mrs. Butler in the perform¬ 
ance of this task. The utmost liberty was given her in 
the choice and management of topics, and herein lay 
her chief difficulty in making a satisfactory beginning. 
The field was so broad, and so inclusive of the best 
Christian thought and the widest Christian activities 
in all lands and times, that two months passed before 
a decision was reached. The result was the adoption 
of historical sketches of missions from the time of 
Christ to the present. This choice was most judicious; 
and the execution has been in a spirit so broadly sym¬ 
pathetic and truly charitable and Christian that mis¬ 
sion wmrkers in other Churches than our own will find 
in this volume much to inspire them in their efforts. 

Mrs. Butler finds it impossible to give detailed credit 
to all the authors of books and magazines, old and 
new, who have been freely drawn upon for the mate¬ 
rials gathered together in these pages. Historians are 
not understood to stress originality in the statement of 


INTRODUCTION. 


5 


facts. Bat she desires to express her obligations to Dr. 
William P. Harrison for his kindness and generosity 
in giving her the free use of his unequaled private li¬ 
brary, and to Dr. W. G. E. Cunnyngham for a similar 
use of his books and for many helpful suggestions. 
This help was indispensable in the composition of this 
book. 

the last annual meeting of our Woman’s Board 
of Foreign Missions, Mrs. Butler was requested to have 
the “ Mission Studies ” published in book form, to be 
used in the circulating libraries of our missionary socie¬ 
ties, and as a vehicle of general information for all. To 
this end the whole work has been carefully revised, and 
some parts entirely rewritten. 

Hitherto the Church of Christ has done little more 
than play at missions. Yet these small efforts the 
Head of the Church has seen lit to bless abundantly. 
Christ’s heralds are on the mountain top of faith and 
hope, watching for the dawn of the new century. The 
twentieth century will undoubtedly witness material 
and commercial advancement of which the world has 
never yet dared even to dream. Shall it not witness a 
corresponding development of the work of Christian 
missions? “ 0 Zion,that bringest good tidings, get thee 
up into the high mountain; 0 Jerusalem, that bringest 
good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, 
be not afraid. . . . Behold, the Lord God will come 
with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: 


6 


MISSION STUDIES. 


behold, his reward is with him, and his work before 
him.” 

It is hardly necessary to add a concluding word 
about the writer of this engaging volume. She is 
known to the whole Church. The editor of the Wom¬ 
an’s Missionary Advocate from its establishment, and 
the daughter of the Rev. Thomas Stringfield, the first 
editor of the Nashville Christian Advocate, Mrs. Butler is 
entitled to be heard both by right of her Methodist de¬ 
scent and by right of her own unfailing devotion to the 
Church of her choice. She has wrought successfully 
for the women of the whole Church in the pages of the 
excellent magazine which she edits, and now crowns 
her gifts to the Master and to his with this helpful and 
enjoyable book. Jno. J. Tigert. 

Nashville, Term., January 7, 1895. 


CONTENTS. 


Chapter I. page 

Early Christian Missions. 9 

Chapter II. 

Early Christian Missions (Continued). 18 

Chapter III. 

Early Christian Missions (Continued). 30 

Chapter IV. 

Early Christian Missions (Continued). 42 

Chapter V. 

Early Christian Missions (Continued). 54 

Chapter VI. 

First Protestant Missions in America. 64 

Chapter VII. 

The Danes in India. 74 

Chapter VIII. 

The Danes in Greenland. 88 

Chapter IX. 

India. 99 

Chapter X. 

China. 124 

Chapter XI. 

China (Continued). 138 

Chapter XII. 

Madagascar. 164 

Chapter XIII. 

Sandwich Islands. 180 


(O 















8 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Chapter XIV. page 

New Zealand. 193 

Chapter XV. 

The Islands of the Sea. 212 

Chapter XVI. 

Africa. 235 

Chapter XVII. 

Africa (Continued). 246 

Chapter XVIII. 

Africa (Continued).264 

Chapter XIX. 

Africa (Continued). 282 

Chapter XX. 

South America. 301 

Chapter XXI. 

Mexico. 312 

Chapter XXII. 

Conclusion.320 











CHAPTEE I. 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 

HE beginning of Christianity was the 



beginning of missionary work. In the 
command of Christ, “ Go ye into all the world, 
and preach the gospel to every creature,” we 
have the origin of Christian Missions, the 
scope of Christian Missions, and the obliga¬ 
tions of Christian Missions, imposed on every 
person who has heard of Christ to dissemi¬ 
nate his gospel. 

The word “mission” is derived from one 
which means “to send,” and signifies that 
the thing or person sent has a message to 
proclaim or a work to perform; and by 
Christian Missions we understand that, as 
the Father hath sent Christ to save the 
world, even so Christ sends his believers to 
fulfill his command, that the will of the Fa¬ 
ther may be accomplished. This spirit of obe¬ 
dience is the foundation of Christian charac¬ 
ter, and is the germ of all life and power in 
the Church. 


(9) 


10 


MISSION STUDIES. 


When Christ came it is said that all the 
nations of the earth were in peace. This 
fact was strangely significant of his coming, 
of his character, and of his mission. Other 
facts, aside from prophecy, were equally and 
perhaps more remarkable as foretokens of 
and preparations for the new gospel. God 
“ works in a mysterious way,” but usually by 
slow processes, as shown in these progressive 
steps of his providence. About three hun¬ 
dred and thirty-four or five years before 
Christ the conquests of Alexander the Great 
had scattered far and wide the learning and 
culture of the Greeks; in fact, the ministry 
of Greece to the civilized world, though but 
“a fringe on the skirts of barbarism,” has 
been one of peculiar power in art and liter¬ 
ature, even to the present day. This learning, 
becoming so widely diffused, prepared the 
way for the Greek version of the Old Testa¬ 
ment (called the Septuagint), which was 
translated into that language two hundred 
and fifty years before Christ, and was in gen¬ 
eral use at the time of Christ’s birth. 

One hundred years passed, and there was 
another step in the divine plan: Greece sub¬ 
mitted to Rome one hundred and forty-six 
years before Christ, and the Greek language 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


11 


became more and more widely disseminated 
as the language of commerce, of polite inter¬ 
course, and of relined philosophy. Syria was 
made a Roman province sixty-five years be¬ 
fore Christ, and from that time the Jews were 
under the government of Rome. 

There was much travel and seeking after 
knowledge; there was earnest study of the 
Scriptures among devout Jews, and anxious 
inquiries concerning the Messiah; there were 
restless forebodings, and quiet waitings in 
hope of the fulfillment of divine prophecy; so 
that when he came the condition of the whole 
country justified Paul’s expression that “the 
fullness of time had come.” 

The scriptures were fulfilled in their sight 
and hearing. The life of Christ, in the beau¬ 
ty of its holiness, was a constant miracle of 
good to those about him; and on his first 
journey from Judea to Galilee he went 
through Samaria, that he might show to. a 
people with whom the Jews had no dealings 
that he was indeed the Christ. A woman 
was the first to hear of the “living water,” 
the first to implore him for its saving power, 
and the first to beai his message to her peo¬ 
ple, many of whom believed on him from 
that time. 


12 


MISSION STUDIES. 


From liis disciples Christ selected twelve, 
whom he called apostles, and gave them the 
commission to preach “ to the lost sheep of the 
house of Israel.” He gave them power, and 
comforted them by the assurance of his con¬ 
stant presence and help. Soon after this 
“ other seventy ” were sent out also, to preach 
and to work miracles, Christ charging them 
to pray the Lord to send more laborers into 
the harvest. 

It is said that the twelve were chosen to 
represent the twelve tribes of Israel, and 
therefore the whole Hebrew race; and as the 
seventy were the same in number as the sena¬ 
tors composing the Sanhedrin, or the grand 
council of the nation, it was intended to show 
the Jews that all religious power should be 
vested in him alone. 

His life, death, resurrection, and ascen¬ 
sion made a wonderful impression; but on 
the day of Pentecost the great work of saving 
souls was quickened in a most startling man¬ 
ner. The disciples w^ere emboldened to speak 
as never before, and “power from on high” 
was given them, to their own astonishment 
and tliat of the crowds of Jews and foreign¬ 
ers who were present. 

Persecution followed, but it only fanned 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


13 


the flame of enthusiasm and increased the 
zeal of Christ’s followers. The martyrdom 
of Stephen, by scattering them in every di¬ 
rection, spread the news of Christ throughout 
that and other lands. 

Then came Paul’s strange conversion. The 
grain of mustard seed was growing into won¬ 
derful proportions. The disciples had be¬ 
come so numerous that it was necessary to 
band themselves together into churches at An¬ 
tioch, as had been done at Jerusalem; and 
here, at Antioch, the capital of the Greek 
kings of Syria, they were, by way of derision, 
first called Christians, and specific work was 
assigned to the members, both men and 
women. 

Thus it will be seen that the missionary 
spirit is the spirit cf Christ—the same “yes¬ 
terday, to-day, and forever.” There is no 
more limit to the “great commission” now 
than in apostolic times—no more limit to our 
obedience and responsibility than when Christ 
stood among the hills in Galilee, and said: 
“ Go YE.” See how tenderly he added the 
promise: “And lo! I am with you alway.” 

The full scope of Christ’s doctrine con¬ 
cerning salvation was not understood by the 
Jews until it was revealed to Peter in visions 


14 


MISSION STUDIES. 


from God. So obtuse were their minds and 
hearts that, heretofore, they believed the gos¬ 
pel was intended only for the Jews; but when 
the Holy Ghost was poured out upon the 
Gentiles also they were greatly astonished, 
and “the brethren received the news with 
great joy.” Though “beginning at Jerusa¬ 
lem,” this work of saving souls could not be 
confined there, because its purpose is “ to go ” 
throughout the earth. 

In the Acts of the Apostles, written by 
Luke, while he accompanied Paul on his mis¬ 
sionary journeys, little is said of the w T ork 
accomplished by any of the twelve apostles 
except Peter, who became most conspicuous 
as a leader by his intrepid words and con¬ 
duct, by his untiring energy, and his clear 
demonstrations of the truths he had been 
taught by Christ. 

When Peter was called by Christ, and set 
apart as an apostle, he was a disciple of John 
the Baptist. His character and work are 
plainly portrayed in the New Testament, and 
other writers state that his missionary jour¬ 
neys extended as far as Babylon. It is said 
that his wife, Perpetua, accompanied him on 
these journeys. After the church was organ¬ 
ized at Antioch, which was perhaps the first 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


15 


Gentile church, little more is heard of Peter 
and his work. According to early writers he 
suffered martyrdom. 

The apostle James labored as a missionary 
among the many Jews that were scattered 
abroad in Asia Minor; while Andrew traveled 
and preached in Scythia, in Greece, and Asia 
Minor. He preached successfully also in 
Constantinople. James and Andrew were 
both followers of John the Baptist when 
summoned by Christ to his side. 

Philip was with Andrew a part of the time, 
and preached also in Upper Asia. He had 
four daughters who gave themselves to the 
work of teaching and prophesying. 

Batholomew, or Nathanael as sometimes 
called, traveled in India, and left wdth those 
people a copy of the Gospel according to 
Matthew. 

Every film of doubt had been removed 
from the mind of Thomas, and he became an 
active and very useful missionary, laboring 
among the Medes, Persians, and Parthians. It 
is said that when the Portuguese visited India 
in the sixteenth century they found traditions 
and monuments that convinced them that 
Thomas had preached there, and the Syrian 
Christians of India reverence him as the 


16 


MISSION STUDIES. 


founder of their churches. The Chaldean 
Christians throughout all Asia claim him as 
their apostle, and it is said also that he visit¬ 
ed Ceylon. 

Matthew remained in Judea, preaching and 
writing the Gospel that bears his name. He 
then went as a missionary into Ethiopia, Per¬ 
sia, Parthia, and India. 

Simon seems to have traveled through 
Egypt, Cyrene, Asia, and Libya, and it is as¬ 
serted that he introduced the gospel into Brit¬ 
ain, where he preached and wrought miracles. 

John, the disciple who leaned upon his 
Lord in loving sympathy, and to whom was 
committed his mother, labored for some time 
with Peter, sharing his persecutions; he 
worked miracles, and traveled in India and 
Asia Minor. He was banished by the Em¬ 
peror Domitian, to work in the mines on the 
Isle of Patmos; and here the keen, spiritual 
insight acquired by close companionship with 
Jesus, and intensified by suffering, was re¬ 
warded by the wonderful visions recorded in 
Revelation. Under the reign of Nerva, an¬ 
other Emperor of Home, he was recalled and 
came to the city of Ephesus, where he con¬ 
tinued to preach until he peacefully died in 
the ninety-ninth year of his age. 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


17 


Jude began liis missionary work in Judea, 
Galilee, Samaria, and afterward extended his 
travels into Persia, Greece, and other coun¬ 
tries. 

James the Less seems to have confined his 
missionary labors to the city of Jerusalem. 
Though so little is said about him in the Gos¬ 
pels, he occupied a prominent place among 
the apostles, and was appointed to preside 
over the churches as a sort of bishop. Tra¬ 
dition says he was thrown down from the 
temple by the scribes and Pharisees, then 
stoned and beaten to death. 

Matthias was elected to fill the place of Ju¬ 
das, the betrayer. Very little is known of 
him; but he was a constant companion of Je¬ 
sus during the three years of his ministry, 
and became a faithful preacher of the gospel. 
This concludes the account of the missionary 
travels of the twelve apostles before and aft¬ 
er the ascension of our Lord. 

2 


CHAPTER II. 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS (CONTINUED). 

R. CLARKE, the learned commentator, 



^ says: “The history of the apostolic 
Church is a series of wonders. Everything 
that could prevent such a Church from being 
established, or could overthrow it when estab¬ 
lished, is brought to bear against it. The 
instruments employed in its erection and de¬ 
fense had neither might nor power but what 
came immediately from God. They work, 
and God works with them; the Church is 
founded and built up* and its adversaries, 
with every advantage in their favor, cannot 
overthrow it. Is it possible,” he continues, 
“to look at this without seeing the hand of 
God in the whole?” 

This “series of wonders” is not more re¬ 
markable in the founding and upbuilding of 
the Church than in the wide propagation of 
the gospel during this first century. 

After the dispersion of the Christians at 
the time of Stephen’s martyrdom, a new 


( 18 ) 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


19 


Christian center was formed at Antioch, and 
from this typical city “ the two great streams 
of apostolic history,” Jewish and Gentile, 
flowed in parallel lines, bearing the same 
great gospel truth that Jesus Christ came 
into the world to save sinners. 

In the meantime Saul of Tarsus had been 
converted, while on his way to Damascus, and 
when he reached that place, being obedient 
to the heavenly vision, he was baptized by 
Ananias, and “proclaimed Jesus in the syna¬ 
gogues, declaring him to be the Son of God.” 

It is supposed that he remained in Damas¬ 
cus three years, and after a visit into Arabia he 
returned to Damascus, where he “increased 
the more in strength, and confounded the 
Jews,” until they sought to kill him. The 
disciples saved him, and he went to Jerusa¬ 
lem to see Peter and James, but all were 
afraid of this man who had played such 
“ havoc ” in their city as a persecutor of the 
Christians, until Barnabas became his surety 
and told them of his wonderful conversion. 
From that time he was with the apostles, 
“coming in and going out of Jerusalem,” 
speaking boldly in the name of the Lord, and 
disputing with Grecians. 

Again his enemies were aroused, and the 


20 


MISSION STUDIES. 


brethren saved him by sending him to his na¬ 
tive city, Tarsus. 

About this time there was a great revival in 
the Church at Antioch, and many were turn¬ 
ing unto the Lord. It was something new 
for these converted Gentiles or heathen to be 
received on the same terms with Jewish 
Christians, with the same rights, the same 
faith, the same hope, and the same baptism; 
therefore the disciples at Jerusalem looked 
on the whole movement with suspicion, and 
Barnabas was sent to Antioch to discover the 
true state of things. Being a good man, “ he 
was glad and exhorted them all.” He then 
w r ent to Tarsus, and brought Saul to Antioch, 
where, for one whole year, they labored with 
the people. 

Saul (or Paul, as he was afterwards called) 
was a stanch Hebrew*, and being a native of 
Tarsus, a Gentile city, a Boman citizen also. 
He had been educated by Gamaliel, one of 
the most famous doctors of the law in Jerusa¬ 
lem, and with all the literary culture and gen¬ 
ius of the Greeks added to his own lofty qual¬ 
ities, he w r as able to adapt himself to the 
learned and the unlearned, to the bond and to 
the free. Paul possessed not only the learning 
requisite to expound the Scriptures, at that 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


21 


time so universally read in the Greek lan¬ 
guage, but by his peculiar logical power and 
keen insight into spiritual things he was able 
to show the relation between them and the 
new gospel not yet written, which they had 
received from the lips of Christ. 

The personal disclosures made to Paul, by 
God himself, in visions, were necessary for 
him, as no one could be an apostle who had 
not seen Christ; and these visions were equiv¬ 
alent to the advantages possessed by the other 
apostles in their personal companionship with 
Jesus during his ministry, and in the forty 
days intervening between his resurrection and 
ascension. 

All these facts in the ]ife and character of 
St. Paul pointed directly to the mission for 
which God was preparing him; and when 
“ the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas 
and Saul for the work whereunto I have 
called them,” they were both ready to go, and 
Paul became the first great foreign mission¬ 
ary, and very soon began his missionary jour¬ 
neys so graphically described by Luke in the 
Acts of the Apostles. 

Previous to the call of Barnabas and Saul 
by the Holy Ghost, and their separation for 
the great missionary work before them, news 


22 


MISSION STUDIES. 


came of the distress of the brethren in Jeru¬ 
salem, caused by a famine. 

Without delay generous help was provided 
and sent by the hands of Barnabas and Saul, 
and when they returned to Antioch they took 
John Mark, a nephew of Barnabas, with 
them as a helper. 

The spirit that prompted this liberal mis¬ 
sionary contribution brought on a season of 
prayer and fasting which was followed by es¬ 
pecial blessings and a revelation of the will 
of God concerning these men who were to go 
among the heathen and preach Jesus Christ 
and him crucified. They received this com¬ 
mission without doubt or hesitation, and aft¬ 
er religious services were “sent forth by the 
Holy Ghost.” 

They were accompanied by John Mark, 
who “ ministered unto them.” When ready 
for the journey they went to Seleucia, the 
seaport from whence they sailed to the Island 
of Cyprus, the native place of Barnabas, and 
landed at Salamis, a town on the eastern coast, 
where they preached in the synagogues of the 
Jews. 

They then traveled one hundred miles 
across the island to Paphos, the capital city 
on the western coast. It was here that Ely- 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


23 


mas the Sorcerer was struck blind for his sins; 
and Sergius Paulus, an eminent Gentile, was 
converted. He was so impressed by Paul’s 
manner and the new doctrine he w r as teach¬ 
ing that he sent for him, and “desired to 
hear the word of God.” 

About this time the strength and dignity 
of Paul’s character became more fully devel¬ 
oped, and he naturally took his place as lead¬ 
er, instead of Barnabas as heretofore. 

After preaching in the synagogues of Pa¬ 
phos, Paul and his companions again set sail, 
and arrived at Perga in Pampliylia. At this 
point the heart of John Mark failed; it is 
supposed the difficulties were becoming too 
great for his endurance, and he returned to 
Jerusalem; but our two missionaries, still un¬ 
daunted, traveled on through many dangers 
to Antioch in Pisidia. 

On the Sabbath day they went into the syna¬ 
gogue and sat down as usual with the assem¬ 
bly, and listened to the reading of the law 
and the prophets. The rulers of the syna¬ 
gogue then invited them, as strangers, to 
speak any word of exhortation to the people, 
and Paul stood up, and beckoning with his 
hand spoke the words recorded in Acts xiii. 
16-41. He spoke with such convincing pow- 


24 


MISSION STUDIES. 


er that he was invited to address them again 
on the next Sabbath, when ‘‘almost the whole 
city came together to hear the word of God.” 

Of course they had not been idle during 
the week; and the Jews, seeing that the same 
gift was offered to the Gentiles, were filled 
with envy, and contradicted Paul and Barna¬ 
bas; so they becoming bold declared that the 
word of God had been sent to them first, as 
they were sent to be “a light of the Gentiles,” 
but everywhere they had rejected the truth; 
and now he said, “Lo, we turn to the Gen¬ 
tiles.” And thus throughout all that region 
the word of the Lord was published. 

Paul and his companion were finally driven 
from the city, and they traveled on to Iconi- 
um, where they preached as usual until forced 
to leave. Prom thence they fled to Lystra. 
At Lystra a cripple was healed; and the peo¬ 
ple who were uncivilized heathen imagined 
that Paul and Barnabas were gods to be 
worshiped. When not allowed to worship 
them as gods the people were easily persuad¬ 
ed to go to the other extreme and turn against 
them, and Paul was stoned until they believed 
he was dead; but lie revived, and the next 
day Paul and Barnabas went to Derbe. 

After preaching the gospel in Derbe, and 


EAELY CHKISTIAN MISSIONS. 


25 


teaching many, the apostles again returned 
by way of Lystra and Iconium to Antioch in 
Pisidia, then retraced their steps through all 
the cities, and ordained elders in every 
church. They finally reached Antioch in 
Syria, after an absence of one year, and call¬ 
ing the Church together “rehearsed all that 
God had done with them, and how he had 
opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles.” 

It is said that Paul and Barnabas remained 
in Antioch with the disciples a long time, 
perhaps six or seven years, teaching and 
preaching the word of God. About this 
time some “false brethren,” as Paul calls 
them, came from Jerusalem, and unsettled 
the minds of many of the disciples on certain 
questions concerning the law of Moses. It 
was determined finally that Paul, Barnabas, 
and others should go to Jerusalem and con¬ 
sult the elders and the apostles about these 
questions. 

Paul was evidently guided by the Spirit, as 
he tells us in Galatians that he “ went up to 
Jerusalem by revelation,” and that Titus went 
with him. As they journeyed through Phe- 
nice and Samaria, they told the brethren how T 
the Gentiles were turning to Christ; and 
their mutual joy in giving and hearing this 


26 


MISSION STUDIES. 


news showed the great enthusiasm and ear¬ 
nestness that pervaded the whole Church. 

When they reached Jerusalem Paul con¬ 
ferred privately with James, John, and Peter, 
and then a general Council of the Church 
was called, and the questions in debate were 
fully discussed. They were finally decided 
“ by the incomparable simplicity and wis¬ 
dom” of James, who suggested a compro¬ 
mise, and that a letter should be sent to the 
churches explaining the whole matter. Judas, 
called Barsabas, and Silas were the chosen 
delegates, commissioned not only to deliver 
the decree of the council, but to testify by 
their own words how the work of Paul and 
Barnabas had been approved. In writing to 
the Galatians afterwards, Paul said the apos¬ 
tles had given the right hand of fellowship 
to them, and the conclusion was, that “we 
should preach to the heathen,” while they 
would still preach to the Jews. 

This decision was gratifying to all, and 
Paul and his fellow-workers returned to Anti¬ 
och, where Silas remained preaching with 
Paul, Barnabas, and others. 

Soon after this Paul proposed to Barnabas 
that they should visit the churches they had 
established, and see how they were doing. 


EAELY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


27 


Barnabas readily agreed, and determined to 
take John Mark, liis kinsman, as they had 
done on the previous journey; but Paul, re¬ 
membering his desertion of them, would not 
consent to his going. The contention became 
so “ sharp ” that as neither would yield they 
decided to separate, and Barnabas with his 
nephew, went to Cyprus, while Paul chose Si¬ 
las for his companion; and thus four mission¬ 
aries went out to preach instead of two. 
Paul and Silas traveled by land through 
Syria, along the eastern coast of the Medi¬ 
terranean Sea, and through Cilicia, his native 
province, of which Tyre and Sidon were the 
chief cities. Then across Mount Taurus they 
went to Derbe and Lystra, where Paul met 
Timothy, the disciple who had been so well 
trained in the Scriptures by his mother Eu¬ 
nice and his grandmother Lois. Paul would 
have Timothy go with him and Silas, and 
they traveled throughout Phrygia and Gala¬ 
tia, though but few incidents of this part of 
their journey are recorded by the historian. 
Paul intended to go into Asia, but was for¬ 
bidden by the Spirit, and they went on, pass¬ 
ing through Mysia, and came to Troas, where 
a vision appeared to Paul in the night. “ There 
stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, 


28 


MISSION STUDIES. 


saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help 
us.” 

It was here at Troas that Paul found Luke, 
the “ beloved physician,” who was also called 
to preach, and being a ready writer he became 
the author of the history given in the Acts. 

This region of country is illustrious as the 
scene of the Homeric poems, “that tale of 
Troy divine,” and was made famous also by 
the presence and heroic conduct of Xerxes, 
Julius Caesar, and Alexander of Macedon, 
but was made far more illustrious and by a 
far greater hero, Paul, the great apostle of 
the Gentiles. 

The “ Macedonian call ” was an appeal that 
could not be resisted, and finding a vessel, 
they set sail from Troas and went in a straight 
course to Samothracia. The winds being most 
favorable, they landed the next day at the sea¬ 
port Neapolis, in Europe. From there they 
went up the mountain, and across the plain 
to Philippi, the chief city of Macedonia. 

There were but few devout Jews at Philip¬ 
pi, and these were women. When the Sab¬ 
bath day came, as there was no synagogue in 
the city, the missionaries joined the little 
company of women in their place of worship 
by the riverside. Lydia lived here, though a 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


29 


native of Thyatira, in Asia. As she attended 
to the words of Paul the Lord opened her 
heart, and she and her household were bap¬ 
tized. She was the first convert to Christian¬ 
ity on European soil, and constrained these 
Christian missionaries to make her house 
their home while they remained in the city. 
A church was gradually built up in this place 
“of both men and women.” 


CHAPTER III. 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS (CONTINUED.) 

FTER Lydia’s conversion at Philippi, 



Paul and his companions continued to 
teach and preach at the unpretending place of 
worship by the riverside. 

On their way to this place of prayer they 
had frequently met a girl, or young woman, 
who was possessed with an evil spirit; and she 
had followed them several days, causing great 
confusion. Paul was grieved, and command¬ 
ed the spirit to leave her, when she was re¬ 
stored to her right mind. 

When her masters saw that all their gains 
from her “ art of divination ” were thus cut off, 
they seized Paul and Silas as disturbers of the 
peace, and took them before the magistrates, 
who had them beaten and thrown into prison. 

At midnight, while Paul and Silas prayed 
and sung praises to God, a great earthquake 
shook the foundations of the prison, threw 
open the doors, and loosed the bonds of the 
prisoners, causing the jailer to ask in terror: 
“ What must I do to be saved? ” 


( 30 ) 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


31 


The prompt reply was then, as it ever has 
been: “ Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” Imme¬ 
diately he did all that was in his power to 
heal their bruised bodies, was then baptized, 
and rejoiced, “believing in God with all his 
house.” 

When Paul and Silas were released, the 
next day, they went again to Lydia’s house, 
■where they were “comforted,” and then de¬ 
parted with Timothy, leaving Luke at Phi- 
lippi. 

It is supposed that Luke stayed there six 
years, to care for and build up this the first 
Christian church that was established in Eu¬ 
rope , while Paul, Silas, and Timothy pursued 
their journey westward. Passing through the 
smaller towns of Amphipolis and Appolonia, 
they came to Thessalonica, the capital of Mac¬ 
edonia. The distance is about one hundred 
miles, and it is said by recent travelers that 
the scenery in this region of country is very 
picturesque and beautiful. 

A writer on the “Life and Epistles of St. 
Paul,” says that Amphipolis is situated in one 
of the most important mountain passes in 
Greece, and “it was here that Paulus iEmil- 
ius, after the battle of Pydna, publicly pro- 


32 


MISSION STUDIES. 


claimed that the Macedonians were free; and 
now another Panins was here ” to proclaim “ a 
liberty without condition and without re¬ 
serve.” 

Thessalonica was a large and populous city, 
and from its position on the gulf, midway be¬ 
tween the Adriatic Sea and the Hellespont, it 
was influential as a commercial center. 

The names of Xerxes, Cicero, Antony, and 
Octavius are all connected with this city in 
ancient history, and in the time of Paul it was 
most suitable as one of the places from which 
the gospel might be, as he said, sounded 
forth like a trumpet, “ not only in Macedonia 
and Achaia, but also in every place.” 

These trumpet tones have come down the 
ages, and across oceans and continents even 
to us; and shall we not send back the glad re¬ 
frain? Thessalonica is known now as Saloni- 
ki, in European Turkey, and little knowledge 
have the inhabitants of the Saviour of men. 

For three successive Sabbaths Paul rea¬ 
soned with these people out of the Scriptures, 
showing them clearly that the Christ of proph¬ 
ecy was the same Jesus who had died and 
risen again. A multitude of devout Greeks 
became Christians, and “of the chief women 
not a few.” 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


33 


At Tliessalonica the second Christian Church 
in Europe teas founded; but the Jews, like 
those at Philippi, were envious of Paul when 
they saw the vast influence he wielded over 
the people, and attacked the house of Jason, 
where he and Silas were staying, but did not 
find them, and that night the persecuted mis¬ 
sionaries were sent away by the brethren. 

It is supposed that Timothy remained 
in Tliessalonica, as Luke had done in Phi¬ 
lippi, to strengthen the new church in the 
faith. 

It was night when they left Tliessalonica, 
and over mountains and plains and through 
dense forests they traveled until they reached 
the city of Berea, on the eastern slope of the 
Olympian mountains. It is said to be a pleas¬ 
ant city now, of eighteen or twenty thousand 
inhabitants. 

When Paul and Silas came to Berea they 
went into the synagogue, and, as had been their 
custom, gave to the Jews the first privilege 
of hearing the gospel. 

These Jews were more “noble” in mind 
than those in Tliessalonica, and were glad to 
search the Scriptures daily, to discover if this 
was indeed the true doctrine. Many were thus 
converted not only among the Jews, but men 
3 


34 


MISSION STUDIES. 


and women of the highest standing among the 
Greeks. 

It is thought that Paul remained at Berea 
several weeks, and he would gladly have re¬ 
visited his Thessalonian friends; but his wick¬ 
ed persecutors again hunted and drove him 
away to Athens, Silas and Timothy remaining 
there, however, to foster this the third Chris¬ 
tian Church established in Europe . 

When Paul fled from Berea he sailed south¬ 
ward through the Grecian Archipelago to 
Athens, the capital city of Attica, “ the eye of 
Greece, the mother of arts and eloquence.” 
He passed by Thermopylae and Marathon, 
famed in Grecian history, and reached Athens 
probably in about three days. 

When Athens is mentioned it brings to 
mind a host of wise men, teachers, philoso¬ 
phers, poets, and lawgivers, for this city was 
the center of learning in the Golden Age of 
Greece. Here Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle 
had taught; the most famous orators of the 
world had charmed the people; Solon, the 
great lawgiver, had originated our own present 
code of laws. All branches of artand literature 
were cultivated to the highest degree; magnifi¬ 
cent temples, gymnasiums, and other public 
buildings exhibited the finest work of architec- 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


85 


ture; and tlie city gleamed even from afar with 
the work of the great Phidias and other sculp¬ 
tors. It is said the streets were lined with 
marble images, and Mars Hill w T as covered 
with temples of gods and heroes, while beau¬ 
tiful altars, dedicated to the divinities they 
worshiped, adorned every available space. 

When we think of Paul walking the streets 
of this splendid city alone , the only person 
there who had ever heard of the true God, 
and remember the pressure that must have 
weighed down his spirits, w r e do not wonder 
that his heart was stirred within him when he 
saw into what depths of paganism the people 
had fallen. He had left a message in Berea 
for Silas and Timothy to join him speedily, 
but for some reason they had not done so; and 
though alone in this great city, he did not 
flinch from the duty imposed, to offer Christ, 
“to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile.” 
In other cities and towns he had encountered 
the opposition of Jews, who, though wicked 
and unbelieving, had inherited strong reli¬ 
gious convictions; but here in Athens he came 
in contact with a refinement of thought and 
intellectual culture that was entirely void of 
spiritual insight, so deeply had they buried 
under their myths and legends whatever knowl- 


36 


MISSION STUDIES. 


edge they had ever possessed of the one true 
God. 

He talked with the Jews in the synagogue, 
and in the market daily with philosophers 
and others. 

Some of the people called him a “babbler,” 
while others courteously said: “ May we know 
what this new doctrine is? Thou bringest 
strange things to our ears, and we would know 
what these things mean.” 

He was then taken to the Areopagus, or 
Mars Hill, the highest court in Athens, where 
the whole city, with its elegant temples and 
works of art, was before him, and around 
him, as eager listeners for “some new thing,” 
were the most intellectual people in the world. 
It required exquisite tact and the most skillful 
use of w’ords to present the truth to them, and 
while his arguments were singularly adroit 
and appropriate, they pointed plainly to their 
sin of idolatry and to Jesus Christ, the only 
Saviour. 

He had seen an altar addressed “ To the 
Unknown God,” and took that for his theme, 
assuring them that he whom they “ ignorant¬ 
ly worshiped,” the “God who made the 
world and all things therein,” and “giveth 
life to all;” he whom every one “might feel 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


37 


after ” and “find,” though “not far from every 
one of us,” was the only true and living God. 

His quotations from their own poets were 
used to rebuke their idolatry, but when he 
told them of the life, death, and resurrection 
of Jesus Christ it was more than their re¬ 
fined philosophy could explain; and while 
some mocked him, others politely said, “ We 
will hear thee again of this matter.” 

The tumult became so great that he was not 
allowed to finish his discourse, and only a few 
persons were converted to faith in Christ; 
among them Dionysius, who became the first 
Bishop of Athens, and a woman named Dama¬ 
ns, supposed to be his wife. 

A commentator says: “It was Athens, not 
Paul, that suffered that day the real defeat. 
She lost an honorable record in Christian his¬ 
tory. She lost the honor of being the fourth 
great European church. She was addressed 
by no apostolic Epistle, and received no hon¬ 
orable New Testament mention.” 

It is not known how long Paul remained in 
Athens, but from there he went to Corinth, a 
Homan colony about forty-five miles distant. 

Corinth was a great commercial city of 
wealth and splendor. The buildings were 
adorned with gold and silver and pillars of 


38 


MISSION STUDIES. 


marble and porphyry, while the wealthier in¬ 
habitants were remarkable for their “self-in¬ 
dulgence and intellectual restlessness.” Canon 
Farrar says that “Corinth was the Yanity 
Fair of the Homan Empire, at once the Lon¬ 
don and the Paris of the first century after 
Christ.” And yet with all this splendor it 
was as notorious for its vices as it was famous 
for its magnificence. The manners of the 
people were extremely corrupt. Paul soon 
found some friends—Aquila and Priscilla— 
with whom he lodged, and, as they were tent- 
makers like himself, while there he “ labored, 
working with his own hands.” On the Sab¬ 
bath days, however, he taught the people in 
the synagogues. It is not strange that Paul 
was “pressed in the spirit ” when the Jews so 
bitterly opposed and blasphemed the Christ 
he preached to them, but he was relieved when 
Silas and Timothy came to him from Mace¬ 
donia. Then in a vision the Lord sj)oke to 
Paul, saying: “Be not afraid, but speak, and 
hold not thy peace: for I am with thee, and 
no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I 
have much people in this city.” With this 
assurance Paul remained in Corinth and 
founded a church.” 

Timothy had been sent to Thessalonica, and 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


39 


tlie good news lie brought from the Christians 
there gave Paul much comfort and the cour¬ 
age to preach with more boldness. The re¬ 
ports brought also induced Paul at this time 
to write the First and Second Epistles to 
the Tliessalonians. “ These are said to be 
not only the first of Paul’s canonical Epistles, 
but perhaps the first written documents of the 
entire New Testament.” (Whedon.) Paul 
had many difficulties to overcome here in 
Corinth, as in other places, and yet many of 
the people believed and were baptized. His 
work was not in vain. 

* After preaching in Corinth for eighteen 
months, he took leave of the brethren and 
sailed from there into Syria, accompanied by 
Priscilla and Aquila as far as Ephesus, a voy¬ 
age of ten or fifteen days, where the people 
desired him to remain; but after establishing 
a church there, and leaving Aquila and Pris¬ 
cilla in charge, he went on to Cesarea. From 
this place he went to the city of Jerusalem, 
and then again, at the end of this second mis¬ 
sionary journey, he returned to Antioch, the 
place from which he had started. 

This visit to Antioch is supposed to be the 
last ever made by Paul, as he had formed 
many other “ new centers of Christian life,” 


40 


MISSION STUDIES. 


but his missionary labors were not yet com¬ 
pleted. It is not known how long he remained 
in Antioch before undertaking his third jour¬ 
ney, nor have we any details of his occupation 
at that time. When at Ephesus he had prom¬ 
ised to return to them, and after remaining 
some time in Antioch he again traveled “ over 
all the country” where he had established 
churches, and strengthened them. He then 
fulfilled his promise and went to Ephesus. 
The eloquent and learned Apollos had been 
there, and though his teaching had been de¬ 
fective on some points, he had met with a cor¬ 
dial reception from Aquila and Priscilla, who* 
had done much there toward the spread of the 
gospel. 

Paul instructed them all in regard to the 
ministry of the Holy Ghost, and for three 
months he taught boldly in the synagogue; 
but there were many differences between him 
and the Jews, and he “openly separated him¬ 
self from them and withdrew the disciples 
from the synagogue, and the Christian church 
at Ephesus became a distinct body.” He re¬ 
mained at Ephesus and continued to labor 
with the people for three years, and other 
churches were established in the surround¬ 
ing country. Paul wrought miracles here at 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


41 


Ephesus, and exercised a healing power that 
brought conviction to many. 

“ So mightily grew the word of God and 
prevailed.” Paul intended about this time, 
after passing through Macedonia and other 
places, to return to Jerusalem, and then said: 
“I must also see Pome.” He quieted an up¬ 
roar among the people, and then went into 
Macedonia and into Greece. 


CHAPTER IY. 

EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS (CONTINUED). 


ATTL remained in Greece at this time 



_T three months, visiting the churches he 
had established in his former tours, and writ¬ 
ing letters of instruction and admonition to 
those from whom he was separated. 

While in Ephesus he wrote the First Epis¬ 
tle to the Corinthiaas (Conybeare and How- 
son), and in A.D. 57 he wrote the second one, 
while in Macedonia. A few months after he 
returned to Corinth and wrote the Epistle to 
the Galatians, and in the spring of 58 his 
Epistle to the Bomans was written, and sent 
to Borne by a Christian woman named Phoebe. 
A new light is thrown upon these Epistles, 
and fresh interest is added to them when we 
know the circumstances under which they 
were written, and especially when we under¬ 
stand the pressure of disappointed feeling 
that forced these wonderful words from his 
pen—words glowing with inspiration and 
with fervent anxiety for their welfare. The 
three missionaries had increased to seven, 


( 42 ) 



EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


43 


and yet the work continued to grow on Paul’s 
hands; opportunities widened and were mul¬ 
tiplied, but he evaded no duty, recoiled from 
no pain, and labored with an enthusiasm that 
in his case is rightly interpreted as working 
“together with God.” 

He then went to Philippi, where Luke 
joined him, and together they sailed for Tro- 
as, reaching there in five days. It was here 
at Troas that Paul restored the young man to 
life who had fallen from a window while 
asleep under Paul’s preaching in an upper 
room. The two missionaries remained in 
this place seven days, then Paul walked to 
Assos, twenty miles distant, perhaps to secure 
a few hours of solitary meditation and com¬ 
munion with God that could not be obtained 
on shipboard; while his companions, going 
by sea, met him there and took him on the 
ship. They sailed on to Mytilene, and from 
thence southward “over against Chios,” and 
the third day arrived at the island of Samos. 
The next day they reached Miletus, where 
they stayed two days; and Paul, always alert 
and mindful of those he wished to build up 
in the faith, sent messengers to Ephesus, 
thirty miles distant, and called the elders of 
the church to meet him there. His address 


44 


MISSION STUDIES. 


to them was as a father to his children whom 
he believed he would see no more, and to 
whom he left a legacy of work, saying - in 
conclusion: “I have showed you all things, 
how that so laboring ye ought to support 
the weak, and to remember the words of the 
Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed 
to give than to receive.” He prayed with 
them, and they went with him to the ship, 
grieving that they should not see him again. 

The ship was soon launched, and they went 
in a straight course to Coos, the next day to 
Rhodes, and then to Patara, where they found 
another ship and sailed to Syria, landing at 
Tyre after a voyage of three hundred and 
forty miles. This vessel remained here seven 
days to unload and take on a new cargo, and 
of course Paul called the disciples together 
and preached to them. 

When the time came for their departure 
there was another affecting scene, where the 
disciples, and even their wives and chil¬ 
dren, went with them out of the city to the 
ship. They had an affectionate parting at 
the seashore with prayer, and Paul again 
embarked. 

Thirty miles south of Tyre they landed at 
Ptolemais and spent one day with the breth- 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


45 


ren; then went on forty miles to Cesarea, the 
Roman capital of Palestine, and at one time 
the place where Augustus Csesar resided. At 
Cesarea they met Philip the Evangelist, and 
stayed with him and his four daughters, to 
whom prophetic power had been given. 

The apostle and his missionary attendants 
stayed several days in Cesarea, and then re¬ 
sumed their journey toward Jerusalem, not¬ 
withstanding the entreaties of his friends 
and the prophecy that he should be bound as 
with a girdle; for another voice was mightier 
with Paul than that of any prophet, man or 
woman, and he was steadfast in his purpose 
to go on to Jerusalem and be there at Pente¬ 
cost. His reply to these friends was charac¬ 
teristic: “What mean ye to weep and to break 
mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound 
only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the 
name of the Lord Jesus.” 

Without further argument his friends gave 
up the contest and meekly replied: “The will 
of the Lord be done.” Some of them went 
with him to Jerusalem, and they were all re¬ 
ceived gladly by the brethren. This was the 
end of Paul’s third missionary journey, which 
is described in the Acts in more minute detail 
than the others. The next day after his ar- 


46 


MISSION STUDIES. 


rival lie went to Janies and to the elders to re¬ 
port the results of his labors. 

While there were many thousands of Jews 
who believed in Christ, and rejoiced in the 
recital Paul gave of his work, among both 
Jews and Gentiles there were multitudes of 
wicked unbelievers who were ready at any 
moment to seize and put him to death. When 
Paul and his companions went to the feast of 
Pentecost in the temple, with the offerings 
required by the Jewish law, he was arrested 
by a violent mob, and a terrible confusion 
among the people ensued. “Away with him! 
away with him! ” was the cry, until he was res¬ 
cued from the mob by Eoman soldiers, and 
allowed to speak in his own defense. He 
stood on the stairs, and no sooner had he said 
in the Hebrew language: “Men, brethren, 
and fathers, hear ye my defense,” than all 
were quiet, listening to the story of his life 
and his religious experience. With breath¬ 
less interest they listened until he began to 
unfold the scheme of Christian redemption 
for the Gentiles as well as for the Jews, 
which was more than their narrow minds and 
hearts could endure, and they grew more and 
more violent. The captain commanded the 
men to bind him, but he let them know that 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


47 


he also was a freeborn Eoman citizen; he 
was then released from his bonds and brought 
the next day before the Sanhedrin, the great 
council of which he was a member when 
Stephen was stoned, and he “ consenting to 
his death.” 

The violent excitement subsided, and once 
again Paul was comforted by a vision, and a 
voice that said, “Be of good cheer,” and as¬ 
sured him that he should testify of Christ in 
Home, as he had done in Jerusalem. 

In the midst of the excitement that sur¬ 
rounded Paul after his arrest in Jerusalem 
his own mind was serene and untouched by 
fear, even when his nephew revealed to him 
the plot made by more than forty Jews to take 
his life. 

As he had always done, he took every pre¬ 
caution for his safety, and sent the young 
man with a message to the commandant, who 
took him aside and heard with interest all the 
details of the conspiracy. The officer wisely 
kept his own counsel, and Paul was sent away 
that night under an escort of four hundred 
and seventy soldiers to Felix, the governor of 
the province. 

After a few hours’ travel the foot soldiers 
returned to Jerusalem, and the horsemen 


48 


MISSION STUDIES. 


conducted Paul seventy miles to Cesarea, 
where Felix resided. This city was situated 
on the coast of Palestine, and was built by 
Herod the Great, but scarcely a vestige re¬ 
mains. 

The governor ordered Paul to be kept at 
the headquarters of the military governor, 
and told him he would decide his case when 
his accusers arrived. 

After five days they came, when Paul was 
brought before the governor. His defense was 
so strong, and Felix himself so weak and so 
anxious to secure a bribe from Paul, that the 
trial was postponed. 

Paul was detained a prisoner in this way 
for two years, and, though chained by the 
arm to a soldier, he was allowed to talk and 
preach as much as he pleased. In the mean¬ 
time Felix, whose “convenient time” to hear 
the gospel had never come, was summoned to 
Pome, and Festus took command of the 
province. 

Very soon Paul was called before the new 
governor, and his accusers again came from 
Jerusalem, hoping this time to convict him; 
but Paul saw there could be no hope for 
justice in that court, and once more claimed 
his right as a Roman citizen, and appealed 


EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


49 


to Caesar. The Caesar then emperor was 
Nero. 

About this time King Agrippa and his wife 
visited Festus with great pomp and ceremony. 
After hearing of Paul, they were anxious to 
see him; and Festus, being much perplexed in 
mind, gladly summoned the prisoner. The 
stately courtesy and fearless truthfulness of 
the man must have won their admiration as 
he said: “I think myself happy, King Agrip¬ 
pa, because I shall answer for myself this 
day before thee touching all the things where¬ 
of I am accused of the Jews.” 

This was a fine opportunity to relate to 
these distinguished persons the history of his 
conversion and religious experience, most 
deftly bringing in the fact, so repugnant to 
the Jews, that Jesus Christ had been cru¬ 
cified and had risen again from the dead. 

The governor laughed aloud at this ab¬ 
surdity, and said that Paul was beside himself: 
“ much learning doth make thee mad.” Paul’s 
answer was dignified and courageous: “I am 
not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth 
the words of truth and soberness. For the 
king knoweth of these things; . . . these 

things were not done in a corner.” Then 
turning to the king, he said: “King Agrippa, 
4 


50 


MISSION STUDIES. 


believest thou the prophets? ” Without wait¬ 
ing for an answer, he said: “I know that thou 
believest.” 

When Paul had concluded his memorable 
address, a consultation was held, and the king 
and governor decided that Paul had done 
nothing worthy of death; but as he had ap¬ 
pealed to a higher tribunal than their own, 
they were compelled by the law to protect 
him and send him to Csesar at Rome. 

He was placed in charge of Julius, a centu¬ 
rion, with other prisoners, and they sailed to 
Adramyttium. The vessel touched at Sidon, 
where Julius courteously allowed Paul to visit 
his friends and “refresh himself.” 

From thence they sailed near Cyprus and 
the shores of Cilicia and Pamphylia, to Myra, 
a city of Lycia, where Julius found a ship that 
was bound for Italy. The prisoners were trans¬ 
ferred to that vessel, and they coasted slowly 
along the shore of Asia Minor for one hundred 
and thirty miles to Cnidus, when the wind drove 
the ship southward to Crete. From thence 
to the island of Fair Havens they were driven 
by strong winds, and Paul advised them to 
stop there for the winter because the sailing 
had become so dangerous. 

The centurion listened to the owners of 



EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


51 


the ship rather than to Paul, and as the har¬ 
bor was not large they determined to go on, 
and tried to reach Phenice; but they were 
caught by a severe storm, a tempest of wind 
and rain, that drove the ship near an island 
called Ciauda. They did all that was pos¬ 
sible to save the ship, but could not con¬ 
trol it, and on the fourteenth day they ran 
the ship aground in a creek on the island of 
Melita, now called Malta. Once again Paul 
had seen in a vision an angel by his side, and 
had been assured that the lives of all on the 
ship should be saved. Two hundred and sev¬ 
enty-six persons were on board, and though 
the vessel was wrecked no lives were lost—all 
swimming to the shore on broken pieces of 
the Ship. 

The people on the island were barbarous, 
but treated the exhausted voyagers with great 
kindness, kindling fires to dry and warm them. 
As Paul helped to gather sticks for the fire, a 
viper fastened on his hand. All thought he 
would die instantly, but he shook the viper 
into the fire and felt no harm. 

He cured a sick man also, and then many 
persons came to him to be healed of their dis¬ 
eases. 

They remained on the island three months, 


52 


MISSION STUDIES. 


and again took a ship and sailed to Syracuse, 
in Sicily, where they stayed three days; thence 
to Bhegium, a town in Italy; then on to Pute- 
oli, a great landing place for corn ships and 
for travelers on the Bay of Naples. They 
rested here for seven days, and then went by 
land more than one hundred miles to the city 
of Pome, where the centurion delivered the 
prisoners to the captain of the guard. This 
was in the spring of A.D. 61. 

Paul was allowed to live in his hired house 
with one soldier to guard him. After three 
days’ rest he called the Jews together, and 
told them plainly how he had been accused, 
and expounded the Scriptures to them, “ per¬ 
suading them concerning Jesus, both out of 
the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, 
from morning till evening.” Some believed, 
and some believed not. 

Paul dwelt in the city of Borne, thus teach¬ 
ing and preaching the word of God, two whole 
years. This closes the account of the life of 
this wonderful missionary in the Acts. While 
a prisoner Paul continued to write, and as the 
result we have his Epistles to the Colossians, 
to Philemon, to the Ephesians, to the Philip- 
pians, to Timothy, and to Titus. 

It is thought that he was afterwards ar- 




EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 53 

rested, tried, and beheaded, perhaps in 66 or 
68; but no matter what his fate, he could well 
say, “I have finished my course.” The 
truths he taught then are more widely taught 
now than ever before, and are rapidly spread¬ 
ing among all the nations of the earth. 


CHAPTEB V. 

EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS (CONTINUED). 


HE picture of a progressive Christianity, 



JL as presented to us in the lives of the 
apostles, and especially in the life and minis¬ 
try of Paul, manifests more and more vividly 
the fact that Christianity in its spirit and re¬ 
sults is missionary or it is nothing. 

The first period of Christianity, or what is 
called the apostolic age, extended through the 
first century. 

We have studied the state of the world at 
that time, the condition of the Jews, the found¬ 
ing of the Christian Church, and the diffusion 
of its doctrines among the heathen or Gentile 
people. 

We noted the going forth of the twelve and 
of the seventy, and their continuous labors iii 
many countries. 

We followed Paul from the time he sat a 
student at the feet of Gamaliel, then went out 
a determined persecutor of the Christians, to 
his conversion and prompt defense of them 


(54) 




EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


55 


and tlieir belief. We followed him from Da¬ 
mascus to Antioch, from thence through the 
long years of his first, second, and third mis¬ 
sionary journeys, and the time that intervened 
while a prisoner at Rome, where he still 
preached Jesus Christ and the resurrection. 

We see also that, while Paul himself faded 
from our sight, the doctrines he taught had 
grown clearer, and had spread abroad in all 
the known countries of the earth, even amid 
the fires of persecution. 

About the close of the first century St. John 
the Evangelist died, and Clement of Rome 
was probably the most prominent man in the 
apostolic Church. In the year 95 he wrote to 
the Corinthians a letter which is still pre¬ 
served. 

In a sketch of early Christian missions it is 
said that Justin Martyr, a philosopher and 
Christian teacher, wrote about one hundred 
and six years after the ascension of Christ the 
following words: “There is not a nation, 
either of Greek or barbarian, or of any other 
name, even those who wander about in tribes 
and live in tents, among whom prayers and 
thanksgivings are not offered to the Father 
and Creator of the universe, by the name of 
the crucified Jesus.” 


56 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Tertullian wrote fifty years later, and spoke 
of the continued progress of the gospel. 

From A.D. 100 to the time of Constantine, 
A.D. 313, the gospel was still making its way 
into the regions beyond. 

In the second century men noted for learn¬ 
ing and piety were sent as missionaries to the 
surrounding nations, and in the churches at 
home the fundamental principles of Chris¬ 
tianity were better understood, more clearly 
stated, and a distinctively Christian literature 
was established. 

In the third century Fabian, Bishop of 
Borne, sent Dionysius and six other mission¬ 
aries into Gaul, now known as France, and 
Germany also came under Christian influence. 
An Arabian prince invited Origen to visit his 
country, and “ he succeeded in converting a 
tribe of wandering Arabs to the Christian 
faith.” 

Origen remarked that, “so desirous were 
the Christians of propagating their religion 
throughout the world that some of them had 
undertaken to travel not only to cities, but to 
towns and villages to convert the heathen.” 

In the beginning of the fourth century mis¬ 
sionaries were sent to Ireland by the British 
Christians in Scotland and Wales. Thus 





EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 57 

the knowledge of God was extended in the 
West as it had been in the East, where Chrys¬ 
ostom, Archbishop of Constantinople, was do¬ 
ing good missionary work, and Constantine 
the Great ascended the throne of the Csesars, 
and ordered fifty copies of the Scriptures to 
be transcribed and placed in the different 
churches of the empire. 

About the same time some Christian pris¬ 
oners carried the gospel to the Goths, and 
their pastor, named Ulfilas, translated the 
Scriptures into the Gothic language. Frag¬ 
ments of this version are still in existence. 

It is said also that a woman named Nino 
was taken as prisoner into Georgia, in Asia, 
and she disseminated the truths of the gospel 
there. 

About 330 A.D. a Christian man and two 
companions were cast away on the rocks of 
Abyssinia, and while he was slain the others 
were taken to the king, with whom they found 
favor, and were set at liberty. They were ap¬ 
pointed to special offices—one, Frumentius by 
name, had charge of the education of the 
young prince, and he inspired him with a love 
and veneration for the Christian religion. 
Frumentius was afterwards ordained Bishop 
of Ethiopia. 


58 


MISSION STUDIES. 


In the fourth century Persia and Armenia 
were Christianized; and though there were 
many Christian missionaries in the European 
provinces, there were nevertheless many pa¬ 
gans still in Europe and Asia. 

In the beginning of the fifth century the 
Roman Empire was divided. Christianity was 
no longer a simple belief; it had formed 
itself into a corporate body, and was the con¬ 
necting link—a kind of civilization—between 
the Romans and their barbarian invaders. 
Even before this time, it is said, there were 
forty Christian churches in Rome, and about 
fifty or sixty thousand adherents. As the 
Church gained in power it became more and 
more closely allied to the political government, 
until it became identified as the Roman Cath¬ 
olic Church. It is impossible in these studies 
to trace the extensive missionary work of this 
Church. It is claimed by the Waldenses, how¬ 
ever, that the primitive-Church was preserved 
in its purity among the mountains of the Alps 
until the time of the Reformation. Guizot, in 
his “History of Civilization,” says: “The 
Yaudois are the chain which unites the re¬ 
formed Churches with the first disciples of 
our Saviour.” These people are the “Israel 
of the Alps.” 



EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


59 


Missionaries were sent to Ireland in A.D. 
431. Soon after St. Patrick was sent, and was 
successful in bringing the people “to the 
obedience of the faith.” 

So far we have mentioned only individual 
efforts to evangelize the world, but in the fifth 
century the Nestorians formed numerous so¬ 
cieties in Persia, India, Armenia, and Arabia 
for the dissemination of the gospel. Their 
zeal and their industry were so great that 
“ even the vast empire of China was enlight¬ 
ened.” They founded celebrated schools and 
numerous churches in Tartary, China, India, 
and other countries. 

In the sixth century Christianity continued 
to advance, especially in England and Wales, 
but a knowledge of the gospel was confined 
almost entirely to the priests. One of the 
kings of England married a Christian prin¬ 
cess named Bertha, in the year 560, and 
through her influence a church was built and 
many converts were made. 

In 592 Augustine was sent as a missionary to 
Britain by Pope Gregory, but unfortunately 
it was not a pure Christianity. 

In the seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth cen¬ 
turies the strife with paganism continued. 
The gospel was buried in monasteries, but 


60 


MISSION STUDIES. 


there were many enthusiastic individuals who 
undertook extensive missions in Germany, 
Belgium, France, Poland, Russia, and other 
portions of England, Scotland, and Ireland. 
These missionary efforts, with all their defects, 
were the only points of light in the gross dark¬ 
ness of these Middle Ages. 

The eleventh and twelfth centuries were re¬ 
markable for the attempts to spread the gospel 
by the sword, and the efforts of the Crusaders 
to rescue the tomb of Christ from the Mo¬ 
hammedans; and yet, in all these dreadful 
times, the gospel still lived, and was promul¬ 
gated in many countries until the fourteenth 
century, when “the morning star of the Ref¬ 
ormation ” began to shine upon the benighted 
people. 

It is impossible in this limited sketch to 
give a true history of the condition of the 
Church, and of the missionary work done, 
during that period called the Dark Ages. 
Enough has already been said to show that 
these missionary labors were the main lines 
of light down to the time of the Reformation. 

There had been a gradual awakening to the 
fact that a great many errors had crept into 
the Church, that myths and legends had tak¬ 
en the place of the pure gospel, and that 



EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


61 


many pagan customs had been adopted by 
those professing Christianity. 

The commingling of nations in the Roman 
Empire contributed greatly to these errors; 
and while heathenism ceased to satisfy the 
more thoughtful, and they accepted Christian¬ 
ity, yet Christianity seemed to be drawing 
nearer to heathenism. 

In this period of “ religious chaos ” it is said 
that a woman remarked: “ It is easier to find 
a god than a man.” On the other side, the 
pagan philosophers said: “ What women these 
Christians have! ” 

The Eastern and the Western Churches had 
long been formed; and while the latter, with its 
center at Rome, extended through the western 
part of Europe and Britain, the Eastern, or 
Greek Church, spread over Russia and kin¬ 
dred nations, rallying around Constantinople. 
Mohammedanism arose in Arabia in the sev¬ 
enth century, extended its conquests to East¬ 
ern Europe, and was not arrested until it had 
reached the gates of Vienna. Mohammed, the 
great “ Prophet of Islam,” was the founder of 
this religion, and was a man of superior char¬ 
acter. He first sent out twelve men as mis¬ 
sionaries, pledged to spread the new faith, and 
they did this with such zeal and success that 


62 


MISSION STUDIES. 


seventy others were sent out on the same mis¬ 
sion. Mohammed died on the 8th of June, 632. 
The Koran is their sacred book. All these 
were enthusiastic in their zeal to extend the 
influence of their religions, and no means were 
left untried to bring foreign nations under 
control. Thus the Church had declined into 
vast political organizations controlled by the 
love of money and the thirst for power. The 
genuine love of souls had been displaced by a 
desperate and merciless tyranny that would 
compel men to be Christians, and force them 
to accept certain creeds, or die. This was a 
strange manifestation of missionary zeal—a. 
“zeal not according to knowledge,” and not 
inspired by the love of Christ, and for that 
reason it overreached and defeated itself; for 
even then, amid the darkness, and the confu¬ 
sion and perplexity resulting from it, the “way 
of the Lord ” was being prepared. Light was 
struggling through; the end was not yet. 

In regard to this period Dr. Blackburn, in 
his “History of the Church,” says: “It may 
be thought that the Middle Ages closed with 
an autumn of falling leaves and dying grasses; 
that Enpope was like a cornfield in December 
—the stalks dead, the ripe ears harvested. 
But there was no such death. The field was 



EARLY CHRISTIAN MISSIONS. 


G3 


alive with growths. The nations were astir 
with new enterprises. The people of all ranks 
were in fear or in hope of great changes in so¬ 
ciety ; the peasants were intent upon new rev¬ 
olutions, and the minds of thousands were 
roused to inquiry. Not death, but life, ended 
the old age and brought in the new. Never 
was it more evident that ‘ God was in history/ ** 
The art of printing was discovered in the 
fifteenth century, and extended rapidly. Books 
and Bibles were printed in large numbers, 
thus greatly increasing the means for scatter¬ 
ing abroad a knowledge of Jesus Christ. Be¬ 
fore the close of the fifteenth century more 
than sixty universities of learning were estab¬ 
lished, and thousands of students were study¬ 
ing in them. 


CHAPTER YI. 


FIRST PROTESTANT MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 
LL these things conspired to a revival of 



J-Al. spiritual truth and life among the peo¬ 
ple. Learned men of different countries were 
imbued with the same spirit; they studied the 
Scriptures with more freedom, with more ear¬ 
nest desire to know the truth, and with more 
boldness to proclaim it to the world. The 
general need of the people was reform; the 
general voice, of the enlightened demanded it, 
and reform came. Preparation for this reform 
had long been moving forward, step by step, 
until Luther appeared as the determinate 
force of the great Reformation. 

The year 1517 is regarded as the beginning 
of the Reformation, and those who favored 
Martin Luther’s protest against the false doc¬ 
trines and practices of the Romish Church 
were called Protestants. 

When we remember the long and difficult 
struggle through which these Reformers 
passed, and the dreadful persecutions endured 


(64) 



FIRST MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 65 

by them in trying to npliold their avowed 
principles, we cannot wonder that they seemed 
to lose sight of the heathen and their gross 
ignorance of the truth. For more than three 
hundred years before the Beformation very 
little had been done to enlarge the borders of 
Christianity, and a general apathy seemed to 
prevail among the people concerning the reli¬ 
gious condition of the world until aroused by 
the stirring words of Luther and other re¬ 
formers. 

Finally the strong contest came to an end, 
and then, in the year 1648, Protestantism was 
firmly established. 

The missionary work of the Roman Catho¬ 
lic Church continued with unabated zeal as it 
does to this day; but this work will not come 
within the province of these pages. 

A writer in the April number of the Mis¬ 
sionary Review for 1890 says: “Three causes 
withheld the sympathy and zeal of Protestants 
from missions to the heathen prior to the pres¬ 
ent century: their own internal weakness, their 
contentions with the papacy, and the evangel¬ 
istic work that absorbed their zeal within their 
own territories and colonies. . . . The 

Protestantism which existed as the result of 
the secession from popery during the sixteenth 
5 


66 


MISSION STUDIES. 


century was as different from tlie Protestant¬ 
ism of the nineteenth as the struggling, incipi¬ 
ent vegetation of March is from that of July.” 
And yet there were some who had deep spir¬ 
itual insight, and were emboldened to proclaim 
the truth. In the beginning of the sixteenth 
century Erasmus was one of these illustrious 
men, and he appealed to the people in the 
most fervent manner in behalf of the “ nations 
who stray as sheep without a shepherd be¬ 
cause they have never had any Christian 
teaching.” 

Twenty-five years before the beginning of 
the Keformation Christopher Columbus had 
discovered America, and Americus Vespucius 
had landed with other Portuguese in Brazil; 
colonies were founded both in North and 
South America, and many wonderful accounts 
of the strange inhabitants of these lands were 
sent back to the old country. This aroused 
not only a wild spirit of adventure, but awak¬ 
ened a strong desire among the more thought¬ 
ful to send the news of the gospel to these 
ignorant people. 

The first attempt at foreign missions by the 
Protestant Churches was made by a knight of 
Malta, under the patronage of Henry II. of 
France. Calvin, the great reformer at Gene- 





FIRST MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 


67 


va, was appealed to by tlie king, and, after 
counseling with other pastors, he selected mis¬ 
sionaries to go with an expedition that was to 
sail to Brazil, where they landed in 1556. A 
church was built up, but afterwards the leader 
of the expedition turned against the mission¬ 
aries, and forced them to return to France. 

The next attempt to found a mission was 
made by the King of Sweden, Gustavus Vasa, 
who sent a missionary by the name of Michael 
to Lapland in 1559. Schools also were estab¬ 
lished for the instruction of young people in 
the gospel, and many useful books were trans¬ 
lated into the Laplandisli language. Portions 
of the Scriptures were translated, also Lu¬ 
ther’s catechism, sacred hymns, and prayers, 
but nearly one hundred years passed before the 
Old and New Testaments were fully transla¬ 
ted into that language. 

In Germany, about the year 1622, the Lu¬ 
therans became more active in their efforts to 
extend the knowledge of the gospel, and a 
missionary society was formed for this pur¬ 
pose. A seminary was founded for the edu¬ 
cation of young men who might be employed 
as missionaries. The Dutch East India Com¬ 
pany favored this plan, and placed several 
young men in the seminary for instruction. 


68 


MISSION STUDIES. 


This company also supported missionaries in 
some of the colonies in Ceylon, Sumatra, Java, 
and other islands, also in China and Japan. 
Great success attended their labors for awhile, 
but afterwards the people relapsed into pa¬ 
ganism. 

In 1631 the Dutch Government sent a mis¬ 
sionary named Robert Junius to the island of 
Formosa, where he labored successfully for 
many years. Twenty-three churches were 
established, with a Protestant membership of 
nearly six thousand people. He was succeed¬ 
ed by Daniel Gravius and others, but there 
seems to have been some grave defect in the 
plan of teaching. The island afterwards be¬ 
came subject to the Chinese, and scarcely a 
trace was left of all these missionary efforts. 

In all the countries of the East, during the 
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, genuine 
missionary zeal seems to have been lost, or 
hidden under the fires of persecution, except 
such rare and occasional efforts as have been 
mentioned. 

The Christian religion seems to have been 
fused into a spirit of self-righteous bigotry 
and a determination to force all men into the 
same confession of faith, reminding one of the 
vivid picture in Dante’s Inferno of two natures 



FIEST MISSIONS IN AMEEICA. 


69 


fusing into one. As in that picture the trans¬ 
forming power of sin was in the ascendant, 
so it seemed to be in those twilight days of re¬ 
ligious knowledge and religious living; but as 
Europe and Asia gradually emerged from the 
darkness that had settled over them for many 
centuries, the settlement of colonies in North 
and South America opened new avenues for 
Christian effort and gave an asylum of hope 
to those who had suffered many dreadful per¬ 
secutions. 

History repeats itself in Christian and in 
pagan lives, because human nature is the same 
in both when the governing principle of the 
gospel is forgotten or unknown. As the hea¬ 
then persecuted Paul and other apostles, so 
the Christian, coming into power, carried wars, 
death, and desolation into all lands, claiming 
them for Christ by the power of the sword. 
America became the glad refuge of many, and, 
strange as it may seem, the sword was used 
oftener against the original inhabitants than 
the gospel for their salvation. 

In 1620 the Colony of New England was 
formed. Other emigrants followed in 1629. 
Among these was a young minister named 
John Eliot, who became deeply impressed 
by the miserable and degraded state of the 


70 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Indians. He studied their language and 
preached to them, finally devoting himself to 
them as a missionary: “The first Bible ever 
‘'printed in America was a translation of the 
Scriptures into the Mohican dialect by John 
Eliot,” who was justly called the Apostle to 
the Indians. It is said also that the entire 
translation was written with one pen, which 
simple fact contains a whole commentary on 
self-denial. 

Among other zealous missionaries who as¬ 
sisted John Eliot, John Cotton and a family 
named Mayhew were prominent. One of this 
family labored among the Indians as a mis¬ 
sionary until he was ninety-three years of age; 
and five generations of them were missionary 
workers, turning many from their idols unto 
the Lord. 

In 1636 the Colony of Plymouth passed a 
law to provide for preaching to the Indians, 
and the Legislature of Massachusetts passed 
a similar act in 1646. These movements 
helped to awaken a missionary spirit in En¬ 
gland, and a Society for the Propagation of 
the Gospel in Foreign Parts was organized. 
The charter for this society was given by 
King William III. in 1701, but its purpose 
seemed more to extend the Church of England 


FIRST MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 71 

than to give the gospel to the Indians. For 
eighty years the mission field of this society 
was in North America and the nearer islands, 
and missions were founded in Massachusetts, 
Connecticut, Bhode Island, New York, New 
Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the Carolinas.” 
John Wesley was the first missionary sent to 
Georgia, and received his appointment in 1735. 

Mr. David Brainerd came to America as a 
missionary to the Indians in 1743, under the 
patronage of a society in Scotland. He set¬ 
tled in New York, about twenty miles from 
Albany, and his sufferings in this wilderness 
■were intense; but he continued to preach, and 
went still farther west to the forks of the Del¬ 
aware, where he labored “ with unwearied dil¬ 
igence and zeal.” His ardent nature is shown 
by the exclamation: “ 0 with what reluctance 
did I find myself obliged to consume time in 
sleep! I longed to be a flame of fire, contin¬ 
ually glowing in the service of God, and ex¬ 
tending the kingdom of Christ to my latest, 
my dying moment.” He died October 9,1747, 
in the thirtieth year of his age. His younger 
brother, Mr. John Brainerd, succeeded him in 
this missionary work until his death, when the 
mission failed and the Christian Indians were 
scattered. 


72 


MISSION STUDIES. 


In 1764 Mr. Samuel Kirkland was sent as a 
missionary to the Oneida Indians, and lie 
brought many to the light. The war between 
England and the American colonies inter-. 
rupted his labors, but in 1773 the Missionary 
Society of Scotland took him in charge. What 
is more pathetic than this appeal at the close 
of the war for Mr. Kirkland’s return to them? 
“We have been attending,” said they, “for 
many years to the vast difference between 
white people and the Indians. We have la¬ 
bored much to investigate the cause. . . . 

We Indians must alter our conduct. We must 
give up our pagan customs. . . . We en¬ 

treat our father to make one trial more for 
Christianizing the Indians, at least for one if 
not for two years, and if there is no encour¬ 
agement after this that we shall be built up as 
a people he may leave us, and we shall expect 
nothing but ruin.” Then again in a later ap¬ 
peal, which is as strong now as it was then, 
they wrote: “Fathers, attend to our words! 
It is a long time since we heard your voice. 
We hope you have not forgotten us. The 
Great Spirit above hath preserved and led us 
back to our country, and rekindled our fires in 
peace. . . . Fathers, we have been dis¬ 

tressed with the black cloud of war over our 


FIRST MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 73 

country. The cloud is now blown over. Let 
all thank the Great Spirit, and praise Christ 
Jesus. . . . By means of his servants the 

good news has been published to us. Some of 
us love the Lord Jesus. . . . Fathers, 

our fire just begins to burn again. Our hearts 
rejoice to see it. . . . We hope it will 

burn brighter and brighter than ever, and that 
it will enlighten the Indian nations around us. 
Fathers, as the Great Spirit above has given 
us the light of peace once more, we hope he 
will by your means send the light of his holy 
word, and that you will thank our father, Mr. 
Kirkland, and enable him to eat his bread by 
our fireside.” Mr. Kirkland did return to them 
in 1785 and settled among them, and “they nev¬ 
er seemed to tire of hearing the word of God.” 
The introduction of spirituous liquors among 
them by the white people did more to injure 
them than any other cause. After spending 
forty years of his life among the Indians, Mr. 
Kirkland died March 28, 1808, aged sixty- 
seven years. 



CHAPTEE VII. 


THE DANES IN INDIA. 

HEEE hundred and twenty-five years be- 



- 1 - fore Christ, Alexander the Great gave to 
the people of Europe their first knowledge of 
India. It was even then a country of mag¬ 
nificent resources, and he was anxious, aside 
from his love of conquest, to establish com¬ 
mercial relations between that and his own 
empire. He invaded the country, conquering 
as he went; but before his designs could be 
accomplished he died, and the Grecian Em¬ 
pire was divided. 

Seleucus, King of Syria, was one of the four 
kings who succeeded him, not only to a por¬ 
tion of the empire, but to his ambitious de¬ 
signs on India; and he invaded the country, 
going-still farther into the interior. 

The Syrians had preserved some parts of the 
Bible, and had established churches in India; 
but this is all that is known as a connecting 
link between the religion of that day and the 
time of Christ. These were called Nestorians, 
“ who are supposed to have embraced Chris- 


( 74 ) 


THE DANES IN INDIA. 


75 


tianity through the labors of Greek missiona¬ 
ries from Syria as early as the second and 
third centuries.” Afterwards the Tartars came 
down in great hordes from the borders of 
China, and once again it changed rulers. 

As the valuable productions and rich man¬ 
ufactures of India became more and more 
widely known new channels of commerce were 
opened, and the Persians and Egyptians, as 
well as the nearer nations, carried on an ex¬ 
tensive trade with the people. 

As the centuries passed, the world was pre¬ 
paring for the fulfillment of prophecy. The 
time was drawing near when the Prince of 
Peace should come. 

One more great struggle convulsed the na¬ 
tions; and Greece, Syria, Carthage, and Sicily 
were conquered by the Romans. Augustus 
Csesar was proclaimed Emperor of the Roman 
Empire, and the whole world was at rest. 
Then Christ came, “ a Light to lighten the 
Gentiles.” 

The Romans were anxious to continue the 
trade with India. The thirst for gain and the 
spirit of research that characterized this active 
and energetic people increased the facilities 
for trade, by sea and land, until every avenue 
was opened to commerce. 


76 


MISSION STUDIES. 


It is not known "who first preached the gos¬ 
pel in India, though there are many legends 
in regard to the visits of different apostles. 
St. Thomas was called the Apostle of India. 
And it would seem strange that, with so much 
commercial enterprise, there were none to in¬ 
troduce the gospel. The names of the first 
Christian missionaries to India are unknown, 
but we are told that in the first century some 
of the natives sent a request to Demetrius, 
Bishop of Alexandria, to send to them “a 
teacher to instruct them in the faith and doc¬ 
trines of Christ.” Hearing of this request, 
“ one Pantsenus, a Stoic philosopher who had 
embraced the Christian religion, freely offered 
himself to the work.” He was considered a 
sincere Christian, and at that time presided 
over the celebrated school at Alexandria, in 
Egypt. It is not known how long he remained 
in India, nor whether he was successful in 
bringing any to the light; but he afterwards 
returned home and resumed his place in the 
school at Alexandria. 

The inhabitants of India were weak, physic¬ 
ally and intellectually, and for many centu- 
turies they had been under the domination 
of foreigners. To a people so wanting in 
energy this was an undoubted advantage, as 


THE DANES IN INDIA. 


77 


barriers were broken down and the way more 
effectually opened for the spread of the 
gospel. 

One hundred and fifty years after Christ 
Ptolemy divided all that vast region of coun¬ 
try lying beyond the Indus into Hither India 
and Farther India. The former was only an¬ 
other name for Hindostan, while Farther In¬ 
dia embraces (besides two other kingdoms 
less known) Burmah, Siam, Assam, and Co¬ 
chin China. 

It is said that “ in the variety, value, and ele¬ 
gance of its natural productions India is 
equaled by few countries on earth, and it is 
occupied by a people possessed of many qual¬ 
ities agreeable to strangers.” 

The natives date their history back several 
millions of years, but the earliest date known 
is probably about 691 years before Christ. 
The ancient history of the country is mythical 
and traditionary in the extreme. 

Brahmans and other high castes are not 
descended from the aborigines of the country, 
but from colonists who came from Egypt. 

The Hindoos acknowledge one supreme 
God, whom they call by a variety of names. 
The chief one is Aum , and it is held in such 
great awe and reverence that they rarely pro- 


78 


MISSION STUDIES. 


nounce it except in tlieir devotions or when 
giving instruction. 

In studying the history of Protestant mis¬ 
sions in India, it is well to remember that 
there were other difficulties to meet and over¬ 
come in circulating a knowledge of the gospel, 
and inducing men to accept it, than those 
which arose from the ignorance and supersti¬ 
tion of paganism. One writer says: “The 
difficulties which are most formidable arise 
out of the despotic establishment of Roman 
Catholic institutions;” and Dr. Buchanan 
says: “There is a moral darkness in the East 
of a different character from that of Paganism 
—the darkness of Roman superstition and the 
spiritual tyranny of the Inquisition.” If the 
priests had continued in the spirit that ani¬ 
mated the founder of Romish missions in In¬ 
dia, St. Francis Xavier, there would have 
been little need of missions distinctively Prot¬ 
estant. Xavier was a great and a good man, 
and not responsible for the many fables attrib¬ 
uted to him. He was a disciple of Loyola, who 
said to him when about to embark for India: 
“Go, my brother, and rejoice that an entire 
world is reserved for your endeavors, and 
nothing but so large a field is worthy of your 
courage and your zeal. The voice of God 



THE DANES IN INDIA. 


79 


calls you; kindle those unknown nations with 
the flame that burns within you.” 

Such men as Loyola and Xavier had become 
rare, and the Romish priest near the close of 
the eighteenth century had declared that 
“ Christianity had done its work in the world;” 
but the enthusiastic missionaries led by the 
Careys, Chamberlain, Marsliman, and others 
could not be convinced that this w r as true, and 
did not for a day or an hour abate their la¬ 
bors. They toiled unceasingly, enduring many 
personal afflictions, and established new mis¬ 
sion stations wherever the people could be 
reached. They distributed large quantities of 
tracts and hymns, and many copies of the 
New Testament and the Book of Psalms. 

For many years missionary operations were 
confined to that part of India called Hindo- 
stan, before anything was done to extend them 
farther east. 

The eighteenth century may be regarded as 
one of unconscious preparation for the great 
unfolding of missionary work in the nine¬ 
teenth. 

While the American Indians were attract¬ 
ing the attention and interest of Christians in 
England, Denmark and Germany w T ere the 
first countries in Europe to awaken out of the 


80 


MISSION STUDIES. 


torpor that had benumbed their religious ac¬ 
tivities for so many years. It is with nations 
as it is often with individuals. The first im¬ 
pulse is to save their own souls, their own be¬ 
loved country; and it may be long before there 
comes to them a full consciousness of duty to 
other persons or nations that have not had 
their advantages. All these countries had for 
centuries been devastated by war after war, 
and the great mass of the people were rude 
and uneducated. Those in high rank and 
those who had access to the large universi¬ 
ties were the only persons who had any op¬ 
portunity for knowing the true condition of 
the heathen, and happily Denmark possessed 
a king who was not only intelligent, but kind, 
and courageous enough to carry out his con¬ 
victions of duty. 

Frederick IV. listened to the counsels of one 
of his chaplains, Rev. Dr. Lutkens, and imme¬ 
diately made arrangements to send the gospel 
to the heathen in that part of India that be¬ 
longed to Denmark, on the coast of Coroman¬ 
del. He applied to the University of Halle, 
in Upper Saxony, for suitable men to send as 
missionaries, and Bartholomew’ Ziegenbalgand 
Henry Plutcho were selected. They embarked 
at Copenhagen in November, 1705, and ar- 



THE DANES IN INDIA. 


81 


rived, after a voyage of seven months, in July, 
1706, at Tranquebar, the largest town in the 
possession of the Danes. This was the first 
Protestant mission ever opened in India. 

These two young men were well educated. 
They w T ere earnest and resolute in acquiring 
the languages and preparing themselves in 
every possible way to reach the minds and 
hearts of the people. The difficulties sur¬ 
rounding them in this first attempt to Chris¬ 
tianize this idolatrous people were immense, 
but they proved equal to all emergencies. 

It was necessary to learn not only the native 
Tamilian language, but also the Portuguese, 
as these two languages were spoken in that 
part of the country, and in eight months they 
were able to preach in both languages, and 
translated Luther’s catechism, hymns, and 
prayers, to be used both in Portuguese and 
Tamil. King Frederick continued to be 
their friend, and the Germans aided him con¬ 
siderably in sending contributions to the 
mission. 

In May, 1707, in less time than one year 
from their arrival, they baptized and received 
into the Church five natives “as the first fruit 
of their labors among the heathen.” They 
were soon able to build a chapel, where they 
6 


82 


MISSION STUDIES. 


could hold public worship without inconven¬ 
ience. A school for native boys was the next 
step; then another for Portuguese boys, of 
which Mr. Plutcho took charge. Opportuni¬ 
ties widened, and new doors were opened to 
them. A school for girls was the necessity of 
next importance, and it was placed in the care 
of a widow, who taught them not only to read 
and write, but to spin and knit, besides other 
household employments. 

The mission continued to enlarge, and these 
two devoted missionaries found great difficul¬ 
ty in sustaining the work, even by using all of 
their own salaries. But God had not forgot¬ 
ten them. Help came from where they least 
expected it—from a person who supplied them 
with money when their last resource was al¬ 
most exhausted. Then to their great joy, in 
1709 a ship arrived with a large supply of 
money, books, and medicines from Denmark 
and Germany, which were all gladly received, 
but what rejoiced their hearts far more than 
these was the arrival of three new missiona¬ 
ries—John E. Grundler, John G. Boeving, and 
Polycarp Jordan. King Frederick also sent 
orders to the Governor of Tranquebar to as¬ 
sist the missionaries all he could, and defend 
them from the enemies that had become so 



THE DANES IN INDIA. 83 

numerous, not only among the natives but the 
Europeans living there. 

The king “publicly declared his displeasure 
at the opposition which the missionaries had 
hitherto experienced, and commanded that an 
inquiry be made into the causes of that hos¬ 
tility.” Afterwards he made special provision 
for the mission by assigning “ two thousand 
imperial pieces a year out of the revenue of 
the post office,” and ordained that it should 
never be withdrawn. 

A few years before this time a Society for 
Promoting Christian Knowledge had been es¬ 
tablished in London. The interest in regard 
to this mission became so intense that large 
sums of money were contributed for the sup¬ 
port of the schools and for printing the New 
Testament. This society sent also a printing 
press, with suitable type and paper, and to 
superintend these they sent a Mr. Finck, to 
whom the East India Company granted free 
transportation to India for himself and goods. 
While on the way, in port at Rio, Brazil, this 
vessel and all others, as well as the city of 
Rio, were captured by the French. This ship 
was redeemed, however, and sent forward on 
its voyage, but the two hundred and fifty cop¬ 
ies of the Gospel according to Matthew, that 


84 


MISSION STUDIES. 


had been printed in Portuguese, and were de¬ 
signed as presents to the pupils in the schools 
at Tranquebar, were distributed among the 
Portuguese in Brazil, thus scattering good 
seed by the wayside, which may account for 
some of those strange cases discovered by col- 
porters and missionaries, where persons far 
into the interior, where the Bible was un¬ 
known, had become acquainted with portions 
of it. 

The missionary printer died at the Cape of 
Good Hope, before he reached the end of his 
voyage, thus adding what seemed to be anoth¬ 
er disaster; but the hearts of those wdio had 
sent him, and of many others, were stirred 
more and more, and other contributions of 
money, books, printing material, and men 
were supplied. 

Eight years after Mr. Ziegenbalg’s first ar¬ 
rival he returned home to make arrangements 
for a greater extension of the work. He was 
cordially received by the King of Denmark 
and the royal family, who gave him many val¬ 
uable donations. In Germany also the Duke 
of Wurtemberg ordered contributions to be 
made throughout his dominions. While in 
Germany he married and then went to En¬ 
gland, where he was received by all ranks of 



THE DANES IN INDIA. 


85 


people with enthusiasm. He had personal in¬ 
terviews with King George I., with the Bishop 
of London, and the Archbishop of Canterbury, 
all of whom promised their “utmost assist¬ 
ance and support.” He succeeded far beyond 
his expectations, and then returned to India 
and finished the translation of the Holy Scrip¬ 
tures into the Tamil language, upon which 
work his heart had long been fixed. 

This good man and most faithful mission¬ 
ary died on February 23, 1719, “amidst the 
prayers, tears, and groans of the spectators,” 
in the thirty-sixth year of his age. “ Pagans 
as well as Christians bewailed his death with 
many tears.” Three new missionaries arrived 
soon after his death, and were scarcely ready 
to carry on the work when Mr. Grundler died, 
in 1720. Forty years after the opening of this 
mission there were, including baptized chil¬ 
dren, 8,056 converts. 

In January, 1750, Mr. Frederick Swartz, a 
young man of piety and learning from the 
college of Halle, Germany, was appointed to 
succeed Messrs. Ziegenbalg and Grundler as 
missionaries in India. With two other mis¬ 
sionaries named Hutteman and Polzenhagen 
he embarked, and after a voyage of six months 
they arrived at Tranquebar. 


86 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Mr. Swartz had already studied the Tamil 
language, and was thus far prepared to begin 
work. His colleagues were appointed to differ¬ 
ent stations, and were successful in the conver¬ 
sion of many heathens. Mr. Swartz rapidly 
extended the sphere of his own usefulness by 
establishing schools and building churches. 
English schools also were established at dif¬ 
ferent places for the natives as well as for the 
Europeans living there, and both classes were 
thus brought into closer relations and mutual¬ 
ly benefited. 

Some of the native princes became the 
warm personal friends and allies of Mr. 
Swartz in this w T ork. Young men and money 
were furnished also by the East India Com¬ 
pany. In accounting for the wonderful suc¬ 
cess of Mr. Swartz in turning the people, 
Mohammedan as well as pagan, from their 
idolatry to Christ, one of the converts said of 
him: “Mr. Swartz is full of love to Christ. 
He preached the love of the Redeemer until 
he wept, then his hearers soon became Chris¬ 
tians.” 

This good man died February 13,1798, aged 
seventy-two years, after spending forty-eight 
years as a missionary in India. Other noted 
missionaries worked there faithfully until the 


THE DANES IN INDIA. 


87 


close of the eighteenth century, and it is sup¬ 
posed that in the year 1805, just one hundred 
years after the mission was established by 
Mr. Ziegenbalg, 80,000 natives had been con¬ 
verted, and more than 3,000,000 copies of the 
Bible and New Testament had been dis¬ 
tributed. 



CHAPTEE VIII. 


THE DANES IN GEEENLAND. 

^HE Danes did not confine tlieir mission- 



JL ary efforts to India; and now we turn 
once more to the beginning of the eighteenth 
century, and trace a new line of missionary 
work under their protection in Greenland. 

Early in the eleventh century the Norwe¬ 
gians had formed a colony in Greenland and 
had carried the gospel thither, but after the be¬ 
ginning of the fifteenth century all traces of 
them were lost except the ruins of many 
churches. 

In 1708 a minister in the northern part of 
Norway, by the name of Hans Egede, remem¬ 
bered that he had read of these colonists, and 
after making especial inquiries concerning 
them, lie became very much impressed with 
the conviction that he should make an effort 
to rescue them from the paganism into which 
.they had fallen. 

He had a family to provide for, was 'well es¬ 
tablished, and doing a good business in the 
Vogen, but his mind and heart were burdened 


(88) 


THE DANES IN GREENLAND. 


89 


with a sense of his duty to these fellow-coun¬ 
trymen, and an irresistible desire to bring 
them again to the Christian faith. The un¬ 
dertaking seemed fanatical in the extreme, and 
was really one of great danger. His friends 
did everything they could to deter him from 
an enterprise that seemed so preposterous, but 
his mind could not rest. With him it was “ go 
or die.” Years passed by and disappointments 
crowded upon him, but after obtaining the 
consent of his wife he addressed a memorial 
to the College of Missions at Copenhagen. 
Unfortunately Denmark was engaged in a 
war with Sweden, and he was advised to wait 
for more peaceable times. Thus year after 
year his hopes were deferred, and he was sub¬ 
jected to reproaches and persecutions as a wild 
and visionary fanatic. He could not, however, 
be diverted from his purpose. Finally, after 
battling with his opposers for thirteen years, 
assisted by his heroic wife, he saw the way 
opening for carrying out his plans. The Col¬ 
lege cf Missions and the Emperor Frederick 
“graciously approved the undertaking,” and 
three vessels were equipped by merchants and 
traders for his help. He had already moved 
his family as far north as Bergen, where his 
arrangements were completed; and in May, 



90 


MISSION STUDIES. 


1721, with his wife, four children, and sever¬ 
al other persons as colonists, he embarked in 
the ship “ Hope ” for Greenland’s icy shores. 
They met with many difficulties. Storms and 
ice and furious winds impeded their progress 
until they were almost driven to despair; but 
early in July they reached the end of their 
voyage, and landed at Ball’s Biver, Greenland, 
64 degrees north latitude, and began at once 
to build their houses. The next thing was to 
learn the language, and begin to instruct the 
people in the principles of Christianity. The 
people received them kindly, but at first were 
shy and distrustful. 

Several years passed, and innumerable per¬ 
plexities and distresses came upon them. The 
colonists w T ere about to perish with hunger, 
and Mr. Egede had almost resolved to give up 
the mission and return home, but “ his wife, 
with all the magnanimity of a Christian hero, 
stood forward and resisted his design.” She 
“displayed astonishing courage,” and “in¬ 
spired him with fresh energy and zeal.” She 
refused to pack up her goods, and assured 
them she was confident that help would come 
to them speedily. Her faith was rewarded. 
Relief came only three or four 'days before 
the time appointed for them to return home. 


THE DANES IN GREENLAND. 


91 


The merchants, who had become greatly 
discouraged, now resolved to continue their 
trading, and the College of Missions and the 
emperor determined to sustain the mission. 

In 1729 two other missionaries were sent to 
Mr. Egede’s relief, and five ships, with new 
colonists, workmen, traders, etc., with horses 
to explore the country. A military force was 
also sent that impeded more than it helped 
the mission. In 1730 their most powerful 
friend and protector, Frederick IV., died. 
He was succeeded as Emperor of Denmark by 
Christian VI., who, contrary to his name, de¬ 
termined to abandon the mission. The two 
colonies were ordered to return home. Mr. 
Egede, however, was allowed the choice of re¬ 
maining, but was informed that after one year 
he need not expect any help from the govern¬ 
ment. For ten years he had labored with this 
people, and had baptized about one hundred 
and fifty children, whom he felt sure would re¬ 
lapse into paganism if he left them. He saw the 
Governor and nearly all the colonists depart, 
but he could not give up his work. Two years 
afterwards the emperor relented and sent him 
supplies, and then, as trade became more suc¬ 
cessful and beneficial to his government, he 
was encouraged to support the mission, and 



92 


MISSION STUDIES. 


ordered $400 a year to be paid for the pur¬ 
pose. 

In 1735 Mr. Hans Egede requested the so¬ 
ciety that employed him to relieve him from 
the work in Greenland. He had labored there 
for fifteen years, under increasing difficulties; 
his health had failed, and his children needed 
the education they could not obtain in that 
barren and uncivilized country. 

His efforts to Christianize the people seamed 
almost fruitless, and yet he had done the best 
he could, and left the results with God. 

Before he could remove his family his wife 
died. She had been a true, courageous helper, 
and this calamity made it more necessary to 
take his two daughters and youngest son back 
to Denmark. The eldest son, Mr. Paul Egede, 
had completed his education in Copenhagen, 
and, returning to Greenland, remained there 
a number of years. 

Mr. Hans Egede returned to Denmark in 
1736, taking his three children, and the re¬ 
mains of his wife to be buried in the home 
land. The emperor received him with favor, 
and appointed him to superintend the affairs of 
the mission and to found a seminary in Co¬ 
penhagen, where he taught the language, and 
in other ways prepared young men for mis- 


THE DANES IN GREENLAND. 


93 


sionary work in Greenland. After this the 
work was carried on with renewed zeal for 
many years, and many new colonies were es¬ 
tablished in different places. 

Mr. Hans Egede died in 1758, aged seventy- 
three years, beloved and honored for his faith¬ 
ful labors. 

Later, a war with England caused the 
Dane^ to abandon the mission. Meanwhile a 
new missionary force had arisen: a force that 
has proved more momentous than almost any 
other, and Greenland was not wholly deserted. 

Early in the eighteenth century a man by 
the name of Christian David became “the 
happy instrument of rekindling the dying em¬ 
bers of vital religion in Moravia.” For sev¬ 
eral hundred years this people had endured 
many dreadful persecutions from the Bomish 
Church; they had been driven from place to 
place; had hid themselves in mountains, in 
caves, and in dens of the forest; many of them 
had been cruelly murdered; and, finally, they 
were exiled from their native land, because 
they would not relinquish their ancient faith. 

Count Zinzendorf was a German nobleman 
and a sincere Christian of the Lutheran 
Church, who had lately returned from his 
travels to his estates in Lusatia. To him 


94 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Christian David appealed, ashing an asylum 
for these oppressed people, and the Count 
kindly gave them permission to settle on his 
lands. Two families of eleven persons found 
refuge there in 1722, and others followed, un¬ 
til the celebrated village of Herrnhut was 
built, inhabited only by refugees descended 
from noble ancestors in Bohemia. They 
formed themselves into a Church called “The 
United Brethren,” with Count Zinzendorf as 
one of their bishops. They trace their origin 
to the Churches in Bohemia, even before the 
Deformation, and claim as their own those 
two illustrious martyrs, John Huss and Je¬ 
rome of Prague. 

In a few years their attention was turned to 
the miserable condition of the heathen na¬ 
tions. Count Zinzendorf attended the coro¬ 
nation of Christian VI. as King of Denmark, in 
the year 1731, and became acquainted with Mr, 
Egede’s labors in Greenland; he was much in¬ 
terested also in the natives he saw. When he 
went to Herrnhut he said to a man (possibly 
Christian David): “ Can you go to Greenland 
as a missionary? Can you go to-morrow?” 
The man replied: “I will go to-morrow if the 
shoemaker has finished my shoes.” 

At the same time a negro man named An- 


THE DANES IN GREENLAND. 


95 


thony, who was acquainted with the servants 
of the Count, told them of his sister on the is¬ 
land of St. Thomas, who had in some way heard 
of the gospel, and had long prayed to the great 
God of the Christians that he would send some 
persons to teach her the way of salvation. 
This negro man afterwards went to Herrnliut 
and told the people of his sister’s anxiety, and 
begged that a slave might be sent to the slaves 
of St. Thomas to give them the gospel. The 
interest was so great that two men offered to 
sell themselves as slaves—Leonard Dober and 
Tobias Leopold—but only the former went to 
St. Thomas. He discovered Anthony’s sister 
and brother, both of whom received the glad 
news with delight, and many others rejoiced 
with them. 

Christian David had lost none of his former 
enthusiasm; and he, with Matthew and Chris¬ 
tian Stach, offered to go as missionaries to 
Greenland. They went forth literally, as did 
the apostles, and even as the Saviour himself, 
with nothing but the clothes they wore. The 
prospect before them was unfavorable in every 
respect, but their confidence in God did not 
fail. After some patient waiting the king ac¬ 
cepted their offer, and wrote a letter with his 
own hand to Mr. Egede, in Greenland, rec- 


9G 


MISSION STUDIES. 


ommending these three heroic men to his 
kindness. Other persons then assisted them, 
and the way was fully opened by the 1st of 
April, 1733, when they embarked for Green¬ 
land. These two missions were the first es¬ 
tablished by the Moravians, and at a time 
when there were only six hundred members in 
their Church. The people were poor; had 
been exiled from their native land; and yet, 
after this liberal beginning, in the course of 
eight or nine years they established thirteen 
mission stations in as many different coun¬ 
tries. Some one has said that the zeal and 
liberality of this people not only “reflected 
the highest honor on themselves, but indeli¬ 
ble disgrace on all the rest of the world.” 

Mr. David and his two colaborers landed 
in Greenland after a voyage of six weeks, and 
were most kindly received by Mr. Egede. 
He gave them all the help in his power, but 
that did not shield them from many sufferings 
and discouragements. One year later two oth¬ 
er missionaries were sent to their aid by the 
congregation at Herrnhut, and their faltering 
hearts were greatly revived. 

In 1740 a new method of teaching the Green¬ 
landers was adopted by the missionaries, and 
a remarkable change was soon manifested. 


THE DANES IN GREENLAND. 


97 


Heretofore they had tried to explain the be¬ 
ing and attributes of God, the creation of the 
world, the fall of man, and other difficult sub¬ 
jects; now they began to tell the heathen of 
Jesus Christ—his life, his sufferings, death, 
and resurrection. Their minds opened to re¬ 
ceive these truths, their hearts softened, and 
many among them were strongly impressed. 
Tor three succeeding years there was such a 
general awakening to religious truth through¬ 
out the nation that even the missionaries were 
amazed. 

In 1747 good old Christian David, who had 
built the first hut in Herrnhut, and the first 
schoolhouse at New Herrnhut, their first set¬ 
tlement in Greenland, had the great pleasure 
of taking with him, on a return trip from 
Denmark, a large wooden house, made in 
Holland by the direction of Mr. John Beck, 
which Mr. David erected in Greenland, to be 
used as a church. Mr. Beck preached the 
first sermon in the new church to a large con¬ 
gregation, and the people were delighted in 
remembering and rehearsing the wonderful 
changes that had taken place since the mission 
was founded in 1733. 

From that time until 17(12 seven hundred 
Greenlanders had been received into the 

7 


98 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Church, besides many who had died in the 
faith. Itds supposed that the whole number 
of converts during the eighteenth century was 
about four thousand. Down to the present 
time the United Brethren have prosecuted 
missionary work with un abating zeal and in¬ 
telligence, and it is said that they have more 
missionaries in foreign fields than they have 
ministers in the home churches. A writer in 
the Review says: “In all centuries to come, 
and to thousands, their missionaries will prove 
a mighty inspiration and impelling force to 
similar heroic efforts for the redemption of 
lost man.” 


CHAPTER IX. 


INDIA. 


S knowledge increased and true piety be- 



-L Jl. came more universal the spirit that had 
moved the United Brethren to save perishing 
heathen penetrated other Churches, and mis¬ 
sionary enterprise was more fully awakened. 
The progress made by the Danes in India had 
inspired the English- Baptist Mission to open 
work in that country. 

In June, 1793, Rev. William Carey and wife 
and Rev. Mr. Thomas embarked for India, and 
arrived there in November. They first settled 
about thirty miles from Calcutta, then moved 
farther into the interior. In 1795 a church 
was formed of five or six persons only, and in 
1796 Rev. Mr. John Fountain arrived to re¬ 
enforce the mission. 

In 1798 a school was opened, and a printing 
press set up to print the translation of the 
Scriptures then nearly completed. 

In October, 1799, four other missionaries ar¬ 
rived, and in January, 1800, Mr. Carey moved 


(99) 


100 


MISSION STUDIES. 


to Serampore, which was said to be a beauti¬ 
ful Danish village, where he bought a large 
house with ample grounds. Schools were 
opened, and w T ere prosperous. The 29th of 
December, 1800, was marked as a day of great 
rejoicing, when the first Hindoo convert was 
baptized. He was named Krisno. In a short 
time two others were baptized and received 
into the Church. In February, 1801, this 
faithful Krisno, “self-moved, erected a house 
for God opposite his own, and Mr. Carey 
preached in it to about twenty natives. This 
was the first native place of worship in Ben¬ 
gal.” 

About this time Serampore passed from the 
control of the Danes into that of the English, 
but Mr. Carey said: “We have nothing to 
fear.” 

In June Mr. Fountain died, and the next 
year the mission w^as greatly afflicted by the 
death of Mr. Thomas and Mr. Brunsden. 

In January, 1803, Rev. John Chamberlain 
and wife arrived; and in the next year, by his 
piety and learning and the power to adapt 
himself to circumstances, he proved to be a 
great strength to the mission. 

This English Baptist Mission had now^ been 
in successful operation for ten years. The 


INDIA. 


101 


missionaries had overcome many dangers and 
perplexities, schools for boys and girls had 
been established, and many natives had be¬ 
come valuable helpers in giving the gospel to 
the heathen around them. Five years later 
Mr. Chamberlain said, in reviewing his labors: 
“What can I write of the works of God? 
Millions of the heathen have heard the glori¬ 
ous report, either from preaching or from the 
distribution of tracts and of the Scriptures. 
The leaven is at work, though as yet its oper¬ 
ations are in silence.” 

In the meantime other missionaries had ar¬ 
rived, and Dr. Carey was appointed Professor 
in Fort William College, founded in Bengal 
on the 4th of May, 1800, where, in addition to 
other duties, he was engaged in translating 
the Scriptures. His two sons, Felix and Wil¬ 
liam, had grown up in the service, and become 
valuable assistants in the mission. 

In 1803 a new mission was established in Cal¬ 
cutta by Messrs. Carey and Marshman. From 
its commercial and military importance it be¬ 
came also one of the centers of missionary op¬ 
erations. There was such an increasing de¬ 
mand for the Holy Scriptures that an auxilia¬ 
ry was formed to the British and Foreign 
Bible Society, which was established in 1804, 


102 


MISSION STUDIES. 


“for the single purpose of circulating the 
Scriptures, without note or comment, both at 
home and abroad.” 

The most notable men who contributed to 
missionary success in Calcutta were Dr. David 
Brown, Claudius Buchanan, and Henry Mar¬ 
ty n. “ With a diversity of gifts, they had the 
same spirit; their object was the same, they 
pursued it with similar energy and singleness 
of heart, and they lived to see their endeav¬ 
ors crowned with an equal measure of suc¬ 
cess.” 

In Madras a revival of religion began among 
the Europeans living there, under the minis¬ 
try of Bev. Dr. Kerr, and continued for ten 
years, thus removing to a great extent the 
chief obstacle that made it impossible to im¬ 
press the natives so long as those who were 
called Christians w’ere so abandoned in wick¬ 
edness. A chapel was built, schools were 
opened, and new missionaries arrived, who 
kept the work progressing not only in the city, 
but for many miles around, where out stations 
were formed in many places. 

In 1807 the first attempt was made to es¬ 
tablish a mission in Bombay by a missionary 
sent out by the London Missionary Society. 
The British and other foreign nations carried 


INDIA. 


103 


on a most successful trade here, as in Calcutta 
and Madras, but Christianity among the Eu¬ 
ropeans was at a low ebb, until a lady arrived 
from England through whose influence three 
new chaplains were sent to Bombay, and they 
greatly assisted the missionaries. A Bible 
Society was formed here also. 

It is impossible in this brief sketch even to 
mention all the reenforcements that were arriv¬ 
ing year after year, and the new stations where 
churches and schools were built. 

The beginning of the second century of 
Protestant missions in India marked a new 
epoch, and important events prepared the way 
for a more general dissemination of the gos¬ 
pel. While the people of India were becoming 
ready to receive Christianity, a corresponding 
awakening was going on in Europe. Chris¬ 
tians of various denominations formed mis¬ 
sionary societies. 

About this time Bev. Claudius Buchanan, 
in India, urged the necessity of giving the 
people of England more information in re¬ 
gard to Missions, and offered prizes for the 
best articles on different subjects which he 
proposed. He returned to England in 1808, 
and by preaching and publishing books did 
much toward this end. Several years later he 


104 


MISSION STUDIES. 


made an appeal to the British Legislature to 
grant to the missionaries in India more free¬ 
dom in carrying on and extending their work. 
Both efforts were crowned with results that 
were eminently successful. 

While the Baptist missions, and others un¬ 
der the guidance of different missionary so¬ 
cieties, were meeting with unexpected success, 
the mission at Tranquebar, under the Danes, 
began from various causes to decline. The 
United Brethren had accomplished wonderful 
good; but there had been other difficulties be¬ 
sides the war between England and Denmark, 
and there was little prospect of receiving from 
their former patrons the aid so much needed. 
After several years of great pecuniary embar¬ 
rassment, however, the King of Denmark gave 
them relief by remitting money and promising 
assistance in the future. In the next ten years 
their difficulties increased, and this the very 
first Protestant mission opened in India, as be¬ 
fore stated, gradually declined, after existing 
one hundred and ten years. Their labor had not 
been in vain, as shown by their fruits. Near¬ 
ly twenty-one thousand persons were brought 
into the fold of Christ by this mission. This 
was not all. Other stations in the South, in 
the North and West, were outgrowths from 



INDIA. 


105 


this one, and they are even to this day doing 
good missionary work. It is unjust, there¬ 
fore, to all the faithful missionaries who la¬ 
bored here to speak of the Tranquebar Mis¬ 
sion as a failure. 

In 1813 India was open to Christian mis¬ 
sionaries of all denominations, and in this 
year also the Scriptures were published in 
Malay by the government, which was a most 
favorable omen of the policy to be pursued by 
the representatives of British rule and power. 

These things were full of significance to the 
missionaries, who watched with jealous eye 
every favorable indication; for not the least 
among the difficulties encountered, strange to 
say, was the opposition of Europeans, many 
of whom were infidels. 

God moves in a mysterious way 
His wonders to perform; 

and from this time forward there was no cessa¬ 
tion of missionary effort in India. 

At this time the Baptist Mission had estab¬ 
lished work in twenty stations, where they had 
thirty-seven missionaries and twenty-six na¬ 
tive helpers employed. They preached in ten 
languages, and were teaching and translating 
the Scriptures in many more. They had also 
built twenty-one churches, and nearly twelve 


106 


MISSION STUDIES. 


hundred persons had been brought into the 
Church, while ten thousand children had been 
receiving instruction. During the next ten 
years the work progressed without the occur¬ 
rence of any remarkable event except the 
death of Rev. Mr. Chamberlain, which was a 
severe loss to the mission. Since then the 
work has been steadily advancing. 

The London Missionary Society was organ¬ 
ized for the single purpose of sending the 
gospel to the heathen, without regard to any 
particular form of Church government. When 
the question was asked, “ In what part of the 
world should they commence their work of 
mercy?” Dr. Haweis, one of the founders of 
the society, made an address, which showed 
his own enthusiastic feelings, and was well 
calculated to inspire enthusiasm in oth¬ 
ers. Among other things he said: “ The field 
before us is immense! O that we could enter 
at a thousand gates! that every limb were a 
tongue, and every tongue a trumpet, to spread 
the joyful sound!” India was one of the 
places selected, and work was begun in Cal¬ 
cutta in 1816 by Messrs. Townley and Keith. 
Two years afterwards a church was built, and 
in 1820 a printing press was established. In 
1827 there were twelve native schools and 


INDIA. 


107 


more than five hundred pupils, showing that 
the missionaries were as deeply in earnest as 
those who founded the society. 

In 1812 the American Board of Commission¬ 
ers for Foreign Missions sent their first repre¬ 
sentatives to India; they were Bev. Messrs. 
Adoniram Judson, Samuel Nott, Samuel New¬ 
ell, Gordon Hall, and Luther Rice. When they 
reached Calcutta they found the country so 
involved in war that it was impossible to be¬ 
gin the mission. There were difficulties also 
with the government officials that delayed 
them in many ways. After some time Mr. 
Newell went to the Isle of France and Ceylon, 
then to Bombay. 

Messrs. Hall and Nott settled in Bombay, 
but two years passed before they could ar¬ 
range their work satisfactorily. Mr. Bardwell 
and wife joined them in 1816, and in three 
years they were preaching the gospel to the 
Hindoos in their native language, circulating 
translations of the Scriptures and tracts from 
their own printing presses, and had eleven 
schools, and six hundred pupils receiving in¬ 
struction. The work was extended in many 
directions, and new stations opened. Twenty 
years after the beginning of the mission at 


108 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Bombay there were thirty schools and 1,705 
pupils. 

Mr. Judson and Mr. Bice, having changed 
their sentiments on the subject of baptism, 
joined the English Baptist Mission, but for 
some reasons it seemed more expedient for 
them to establish a mission under the patron¬ 
age of the Baptist Church in America. 

The subject was forcibly presented to the 
home Church, and the American Baptist For¬ 
eign Missionary Union was organized in Bos¬ 
ton, the members pledging themselves to sus¬ 
tain the work opened by Mr. Judson and Mr. 
Bice in Burmah. They went forward with 
great enthusiasm; distant places were visited 
and new stations opened, until in 1818 they 
had twenty-five schools, twelve hundred hea¬ 
then and one hundred Jewish children as pu¬ 
pils. The printing-press worked rapidly, 
turning off portions of the Scriptures, tracts, 
and schoolbooks. 

From this small but providential beginning 
at Bangoon, the principal port in Burmah, to 
all parts of that kingdom, into Siam and other 
portions of Farther India, their missionary 
labors were extended. In the early days of 
missions in Burmah a missionary was led in 
his enthusiasm to exclaim: “ How blessed and 


INDIA. 


109 


golden are these days to Burmali! Painters 
copy them, poets sijig of them, and all derive 
pleasure and elevation of feeling as they gaze, 
while the sun blazes up the heavens, turning 
to gorgeous purple every dull cloud, gilding 
the mountain tops and chasing the mists from 
the valley. But how much more glorious is 
the dawn that I am permitted here to witness! 
All the romance which swells the bosom of the 
sentimentalists, gazing on early day, is cold 
and trifling compared to the emotions a Chris¬ 
tian may cherish when he sees the gospel be¬ 
ginning to enlighten a great nation.” 

Adoniram Judson has been called the Apos¬ 
tle of Burmah. The following was copied 
from a memorial tablet in a Baptist church at 
Malden, Mass.: 

Rev. Adoniram Judson, 

Born August 9 , 1788 ; 

Died April 12 , 1850 . 

Malden His Birthplace; 

The Ocean His Sepulcher ; 

Converted Burmans and the Burman Bible 
His Monument. 

His Record is on High. 

Another missionary, Mr. Gordon Hall, who 
had seemed to have almost as many troubles 
and difficulties as St. Paul had experienced, 
said: “ God breaks up our own plans only that 


110 


MISSION STUDIES. 


he may accomplish his own, which are in¬ 
finitely better.” This was most clearly demon¬ 
strated as early as 1807, when the first mis¬ 
sionaries went to this same port (Rangoon) to 
see what were the prospects for opening a 
mission there. Mr. Carey and others met 
with so many hindrances to their work in 
Calcutta—so many political difficulties threat¬ 
ened not only the prosperity but the actual 
existence of the mission—that the attention 
of the missionaries was turned to Burmah, and 
Mr. Felix Carey and Mr. Chater went to 
Rangoon, and met with a most cordial recep¬ 
tion. This opening paved the way for other 
missionaries from many different societies and 
Churches. 

The Society for the Propagation of the Gos¬ 
pel, that was organized in London in the 
year 1701, has been frequently mentioned. 
Work was begun by this society in Hin- 
dostan in the year 1818, and soon after a 
missionary college was founded near Calcutta 
by Bishop Middleton. “The original object 
of the college,” says a writer, “ was the educa¬ 
tion of Indian and European youth for the 
service of the Church; ” but it was afterwards 
enlarged that law students might be received. 
A large sum of money was appropriated, look- 


INDIA. 


Ill 


ing to tlie establishment of printing facilities 
and the translation of the Scriptures. Years 
after many young men went out from its walls 
and built up mission stations in various parts 
of the country. In this way Calcutta became 
a great center for missionary operations, send¬ 
ing out lines of light and gospel truth in many 
directions. 

A late writer has remarked that “ Calcutta 
is the Waterloo of India—the depot where the 
grand battle between Christianity and Hin- 
dooism will be fought.” 

The work of Missions has steadily pro¬ 
gressed in many parts of India. Time and 
space would fail us in trying to mention even 
the names of the missionaries and the stations 
occupied in this vast country; but in 1881 
there were six hundred and forty-four differ¬ 
ent societies at work in India; and we may 
imagine the progress that has been made in 
the last ten years, the most successful of any 
former decade. 

In a clipping from an exchange we find the 
following paragraph, which gives us some idea 
of the changes that have taken place in In¬ 
dia: 

Eighty-five years ago [says the Missionary Herald ] 
the Directors of the East India Company placed on 


112 


MISSION STUDIES. 


solemn record: “ The sending of Christian missionaries 
into our Eastern possessions is the maddest, most ex¬ 
pensive, most unwarranted project that was ever pro¬ 
posed by a lunatic enthusiast.” A few months since 
Sir Rivers Thompson, Lieutenant Governor of Bengal, 
said: “In my judgment Christian missionaries have 
done more real and lasting good to the people of India 
than all other agencies combined.” Another writer 
says: “ Look how swiftly the gospel has advanced in 
the last decade. Take India as an example. In 1878 
one of the lineal descendents of William Carey bap¬ 
tized, in connection with a single mission, 2,200 con¬ 
verts.” 

One of tlie most interesting developments 
of missionary work of late years has been 
among the Karens in Burmah. It is said 
that “ the Karens present a singular example 
cf a people for the most part without any 
form of idolatry, but possessed of singular 
moral sensibility, and unusually disposed to 
receive the doctrines of the gospel of Jesus 
Christ. . . . They have received Christian¬ 
ity from the teachings of the missionaries with 
an eagerness which has seldom been paral¬ 
leled among any other portion of mankind.” 

In the following extract we may discern the 
spirit that actuated the early missionaries in 
India, and with what patience they waited for 
the fruits of their labors: 

Much seed has been sown, but hitherto the harvest 


INDIA. 


113 


has proved unequal to our expectations. But are we 
therefore to despair? No; though our hopes be often 
disappointed, still we will hope, and wait with confi¬ 
dence to see the glory of God. The work is not man’s, 
or we might well yield to the obstacles that oppose our 
progress; it is not, indeed, of man, or we should have 
yielded long ago. The spirit of the Lord supports his 
servants in their otherwise unequal conflict, and re¬ 
doubles their assurance in the infallibility of his word: 
“As I live saith the Lord, the whole earth shall be filled 
with my glory.” 

Before closing this very imperfect sketch of 
the early efforts of missionaries in India it will 
be interesting to glance at the beginnings of 
woman’s work in India. We are indebted to 
the “ Uniform Readings,” in Heathen Woman's 
Friend (in January, 1884), for the following 
facts: 

Mrs. Hannah Marshman, of Serampore, at¬ 
tempted a day school for girls as early as 1807; 
and soon after Mrs. Pearce, Mrs. Lawson, and 
Mrs. Gagerly, wives of Baptist missionaries, 
opened schools in Calcutta; but “the diffi¬ 
culties encountered drove them almost to de¬ 
spair.” 

In 1818 it was found that not one female in 
one hundred thousand could read. This fact 
was made known in England, and Miss Mary 
Anne Cooke was sent to India, where she la- 
8 


114 


MISSION STUDIES. 


bored as a missionary for twenty-three years. 
Through the labors of Miss Cooke, aided by 
a society of European ladies in Calcutta, thir¬ 
ty schools, numbering four hundred pupils, 
had been opened before the close of 1825. 
About the same time similar efforts were made 
by Mrs. Stevenson, Mrs. Margaret Wilson, and 
others, in Bombay. 

In 1823 Miss Mary Bird was called to India 
by her brother, who was a judge at Goruck- 
poor. She went not only for her brother’s 
comfort, but with an earnest longing to carry 
the message of Jesus’s love to the women of 
that dark land. She labored faithfully in 
school and zenana work for ten years, and 
prepared books for her pupils. From her 
grave on the bank of the Ganges she still 
speaks to the passers-by, bidding them take up 
the work she laid down. 

When Dr. Duff arrived in India in 1832 he 
saw that to gain access to the women the men 
must first be educated and influenced to awak¬ 
en their minds from the sleep of ages. He went 
to work to accomplish this purpose, and lived 
to rejoice in the success of his plans. 

In 1823 Bev. John Fordyce wrote and cir¬ 
culated short, strong, and striking appeals to 


INDIA. 


115 


Hindoo husbands and fathers, which led to 
the opening of many zenana doors. 

Thus, here and there, little beginnings were 
made, and the result has been most gratify¬ 
ing. 

The Woman’s Foreign Missionary Society 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church has ac¬ 
complished a wonderful work in India. This 
Society began work in India in 1858, and from 
one poor little orphan girl received into the 
mission at that time “ the little one has indeed 
become a thousand.” 

In the same number of the paper Miss Isa¬ 
bel Hart says: “As a Church we have been 
honored in occupying the front in the mission¬ 
ary enterprises of India. ... It was our 
high honor to inaugurate medical work among 
women by the sending of the first female 
physician, and building the first hospital. 
Shall we aspire to and be found worthy of 
this further, higher honor of establishing the 
first paper for women in India, written in 
Hindee and Urdu?” We are glad to know 
that this paper has been established and has 
been most successful. 

A sketch of missionary work in India would 
be very incomplete without some notice of that 
which was accomplished by Alexander Duff, 


116 


MISSION STUDIES. 


the sturdy Scotchman. He was sent out by 
the Free Church of Scotland, and was the con¬ 
necting link between early Protestant missions 
in India, and what some have called “the mis¬ 
sionary renaissance of the nineteenth cen¬ 
tury.” 

The long years of patient seed sowing begun 
by the Danes under Zeigenbalg, Schwartz, and 
others, and followed up later, with unflagging 
zeal, by a host of such men as Brown, Bu¬ 
chanan, Marshman, Ward, Henry Martyn, 
Judson, and the Careys, father and sons, were 
beginning to bear fruit not alone in the iso¬ 
lated conversion of individuals, but in a more 
general awakening of the people throughout 
the Peninsula of Hindostan, in Burmah, and in 
Bengal. 

The leaven of Christianity, wherever placed, 
was gradually disseminating itself, lifting and 
lightening the great mass of ignorance, even 
before the arrival of Alexander Duff and his 
wife on the 27th of May, 1830. They reached 
Calcutta after a perilous voyage of eight 
months. Twice they had been shipwrecked 
and mercifully preserved, almost literally be¬ 
ing washed upon the shore of the country 
they had come to help. 

It is said that when the Calcutta newspa- 


INDIA. 


117 


pers told tlie story of their arrival the natives 
said: “Surely this man is a favorite of the 
gods, who must have some noble work for him 
to do in India.” 

These seeming misfortunes, and especially 
the loss of all his valuable books and manu¬ 
scripts, except his Bible, which was washed 
ashore and found, may have given a quickened 
impulse to his mind and shown him more 
clearly the simple and direct work he was to 
perform. 

Alexander Duff at this time was little more 
than twenty-four years of age. He was “a 
tall, handsome man, with flashing eye, quiver¬ 
ing voice, and restless gesticulations,” when 
he called upon Lord William Bentinck, the 
Governor General of India, and told him 
“what he had given his life to do for the peo¬ 
ple of India.” 

His first self-imposed task was to visit every 
mission station and all the missionaries within 
his reach; he inspected every school, visited the 
villages, and acquainted himself with the peo¬ 
ple in the city and in rural districts; he stud¬ 
ied the people, and watched the effect of the 
gospel on them as preached by others, all the 
while studying them as closely as he studied 
their language. His biographer states that 


118 


MISSION STUDIES. 


these minute investigations forced him to two 
conclusions: first, that, contrary to instruc¬ 
tions received from his Church at home, it 
was best to begin his missionary work in the 
city of Calcutta, and make that a center and 
radiating point; secondly, that “the method 
of his operations must be different from that 
of all his predecessors in India.” Carey was 
then an old man; he had preached to the peo- 
of India for fifty years, and was the last one 
of the missionaries with whom Duff consulted 
in regard to his plans, and the only one who 
approved them. 

As before stated, the British Government 
had by act of Parliament opened the whole 
country to all denominations in 1818, but the 
orders were not enforced until after Duff’s ar¬ 
rival. 

A new era of Christian civilization seemed 
about to dawn upon India, though, strange to 
say, the British rulers had been careful not to 
interfere in any way with the religious senti¬ 
ments or worship of the people, and had. not 
only withheld their aid from the missionaries, 
but retarded their movements. This policy 
seems now to have been exceedingly narrow, 
even in that transitional period when religious 
as well as political changes were imminent, 



INDIA. 


119 


and their effects foreshadowed in a growing 
desire among the youth of the country for the 
educational facilities so broadly planned by 
Duff. Colleges had been established by War¬ 
ren Hastings and others, but in these govern¬ 
ment schools little thought had been given to 
Christian teaching; others were founded by 
the missionaries of different Churches and so¬ 
cieties, and wonderful good had been accom¬ 
plished. 

As early as 1815 Mr. David Hare, a watch¬ 
maker in Calcutta, a man of little learning but 
of fine practical sense, and a very intelligent 
native gentleman by the name of Ramohun 
Roy, became greatly interested in the welfare 
of the youth of India, and had frequent con¬ 
sultations on the subject. 

One evening, in a meeting with other friends, 
Mr. Hare proposed a plan to found a school or 
college for the instruction of native youths in 
English. This plan was carried into effect in 
1817, and was the first English seminary in 
Bengal, and perhaps in India; but this and 
other colleges founded about the same time 
were intolerant of Christianity, and after a 
time of prosperity, though patronized by the 
British Government, they failed. Duffs sys¬ 
tem was aggressive; he determined to under- 


123 


MISSION STUDIES. 


mine and explode the ancient systems of tho 
Hindoos by giving the youth of the country 
an “ education saturated with the Bible.” The 
keynote in his mind for the evangelization of 
India was that Christianity should be “not 
merely the foundation, but the culminating 
spirit which was to pervade and hallow 
all.” 

After five years of steady work the failing 
health of Dr. Duff forced him to return to 
Scotland, where for six years his labors to im¬ 
press the people with the importance of mis¬ 
sionary effort, for their own sakes as for those 
of the heathen, were as constant and almost as 
laborious as they had been in India. 

In 1841 he returned to his chosen mission¬ 
ary field, and was delighted to see the progress 
that had been made in every department of 
college work, in church-building, and in the 
general advancement of the mission. 

Eight years after, in 1849 or 1850, he was 
recalled by his own Church to Scotland, that 
he might “ consolidate the work of missionary 
organization, to which he had given all his 
labor on the £>revious visit homo.” 

After a tour through South India and Cey¬ 
lon, and visits to all the mission stations of 
other Churches, he returned to Scotland, it is 


INDIA. 


121 


said, “not a day too soon.” What was needed 
there and then was the same want that exists 
now in all the Churches of our own fair land: 
“ a financier in the best sense—one who could 
create a revenue self-sustaining and self-de¬ 
veloping, as well as control expenditure so as 
to make it produce the best results.” 

For several years his labors in England? 
Wales, Ireland, and Scotland were followed 
by abundant success; new missionaries were 
sent out, and large means collected for the 
mission. 

He then embarked for India the third time, 
and arrived there in the midst of the dreadful 
Sepoy Rebellion, and yet, as before, his mind 
dwelt on the wonderful progress of Chris¬ 
tianity in his absence. In 1830 he had found 
27,000 native Protestant Christians in India 
and Ceylon. In 1840 the number had in¬ 
creased to 57,000, and in 1857 it had become 
150,000. 

Alexander Duff took hold of the opportu¬ 
nities presented to him; he opened schools for 
girls, which was an experiment that succeeded, 
and at the close of the first year an intense in¬ 
terest was awakened in this direction. 

The general scope of Dr. Duff’s plan for 
evangelizing India is found in the following 


122 


MISSION STUDIES. 


words from his own lips: “I have never 
ceased to pronounce the system of giving a 
high English education, without religion, a 
blind, suicidal policy. On the other hand, 
for weighty reasons, I have never ceased to 
declare that if our object be, not merely for 
our own aggrandizement, but very specially 
for the welfare of the natives, to retain our 
dominion in India, no wiser or more effective 
plan can be conceived than that of bestowing 
this higher English education in close and in¬ 
separable alliance with the illumining, quick¬ 
ening, beautifying influences of the Christian 
faith.” 

The present outlook of missionary effort in 
India is encouraging. The whole country is 
dotted with mission stations, and there is great 
harmony among the missionaries. 

In November, 1890, the Secretary of the 
Sunday School Union of India, Rev. J. L. 
Philips, M.D., said: “India never presented 
so many open doors as now, and we could find 
places for thousands of Sunday school teach¬ 
ers within a week, if we had them. ... At 
an annual meeting of the India Sunday School 
Union, held here in Calcutta last December, 
we started a Sunday school journal in English 
for all India, which is being very kindly re- 


INDIA. 


123 


ceived and will prove a strong bond of union 
between workers in distant parts. On return¬ 
ing to my own dear India I find a very hope¬ 
ful feeling among missionaries generally. 
The Lord is working wonderfully in this land, 
and we look for large ingatherings.” 


CHAPTEE X. 


CHINA. 

A ETEB studying the rise and progress of 
Protestant missions in India, it is an 
easy transition to that wonderful country 
which we of the West call China. 

The origin of this name is not altogether 
clear, but it is supposed to be derived from 
one of the ancient states in the South of 
China, as divided in the seventh century be¬ 
fore Christ, and called Tsin, or Tsinin , by the 
Arabians, who were the first traders with the 
people. 

The Portuguese were the first Europeans 
who traded with China, and by them the name 
was changed from Tsin to Chinian , and grad¬ 
ually it became China. 

It is said that Ptolemy* the geographer, gave 
to the nations of Western Europe the first re¬ 
corded knowledge of China about one hundred 
and fifty years before Christ. The same writer 
says that previous to this time, however, “ ac¬ 
counts of the existence of the land of Confucius, 
( 124 ) 


CHINA. 


125 


and an appreciation and demand for tlie splen¬ 
did silks made there, had reached Persia, judg¬ 
ing from the legends found in its writers al¬ 
luding to ancient wars and embassies with 
China, in which the country, the government, 
people, and fabrics are invested with a halo of 
power and wealth which has not yet entirely 
vanished. These legends strengthen the con¬ 
clusion that the prophet Isaiah has the first 
mention now extant of the Flowery Land, un¬ 
der the name Sinim. The interchange of the 
initial in China, Thina, or Tina and Sina, 
ought to give no trouble in identifying the 
land, for such changes in pronunciation are 
still common in it.” 

By the Persians China was called Cathay, 
and still earlier the Latins called the people 
Seres , and the country Sera, but the Chinese 
themselves called their land Tien-Ha , “Be, 
neath the Sky,” as in their estimation it was the 
only country worth mentioning under the sun. 

The Chinese Empire is remarkable for its 
antiquity, its immense area, its dense popula¬ 
tion, and until the present generation for the 
extreme isolation of the inhabitants. 

Like other ancient countries it has its myth¬ 
ological period, and its legends that have faded 
into the light of true history. There are many 


126 


MISSION STUDIES. 


plausible statements dating historic persons 
back to the time of Noah and the deluge, but 
according to other writers the true records be¬ 
gin with the accession of Fuli-lii, 3,822 years 
before the advent of Christ. 

The Chinese Empire is bounded on the east 
and southeast by the Pacific Ocean, with its 
inlets of gulfs and seas, and on the southwest 
by Cochin China, Laos, and Burmah. It is 
separated from India and neighboring coun¬ 
tries by the Himalaya Mountains; and, includ¬ 
ing Thibet, Ladak, and Ili, in the western part ■ 
it extends very far north to the Kussian terri¬ 
tories. 

Dr. Williams, in his “Middle Kingdom,’’ 
says that the circuit of the whole empire is 
fourteen thousand miles, more than half the 
circumference of the earth, and that it com¬ 
prises about one-third of the Eastern Conti- 
tinent, and nearly one-tenth of the habitable 
globe. 

It was divided into many independent states 
until 1643, when the Manchow Tartars subju¬ 
gated the whole empire; now it is divided into 
three principal parts: the Eighteen Provinces, 
Manchuria, and the Colonial Possessions. 

The Eighteen Provinces are the only part 
that is settled by the Chinese, w r ho sup- 



CHINA. 


127 


pose they occupy a central place among the 
nations, and are the most favored part of the 
earth. Hence another name by which they 
designate them: “The Middle Kingdom.” 

The area of China proper is nearly two mil¬ 
lion square miles, and the population is about 
four hundred million. This fact is a strong 
appeal to Christian sympathy and to mission¬ 
ary effort. 

The greater number of the people are mis¬ 
erably poor; their homes are “low, damp, 
dark, and ill-ventilated, and abounding in 
filth. Even the dwellings of the wealthy are 
wanting in cleanliness and comfort.” 

A writer says: “The present Chinese cus¬ 
tom of shaving the head, and allowing the hair 
on the crown to grow to an indefinite length, 
was forced upon them by the present dynasty 
as a badge of subjection. What was then their 
shame is now their pride.” 

It is not our purpose to study the geography 
and history of this wonderful country and peo¬ 
ple, but merely to glance at such special fea¬ 
tures as may be helpful in the study of the 
history of missionary effort on Chinese soil. 
These studies are intended to be suggestive 
only, and much is left to the alert minds of 
the young people and others who will take the 


128 


MISSION STUDIES. 


trouble to follow the brief outlines given, and 
fill the blank spaces with the facts necessary 
to a complete understanding of the subject. 

A tradition has come down to us that St. 
Thomas, one cf our Lord’s disciples, went to 
China as a missionary, and that many were 
converted to the truth under his ministra¬ 
tions. 

We know something of the zeal and energy 
that characterized the early Christians from 
many other reliable sources than the New Tes¬ 
tament, and it seemed to be the leading thought 
of their minds to spread the news of the 
blessed Christ in every land before that gen¬ 
eration should pass away. It is not improba¬ 
ble, therefore, that China also heard the good 
news in the first century after Christ; but the 
first attempt to Christianize the Chinese that 
is recorded was made by the Nestorian Church 
in the seventh century. 

It is said that “between A.D. 636 and 781 
no less than seventy Nestorian missionaries, 
whose names are preserved, labored in that 
empire, among whom Olupon, the earliest of 
the number, was especially distinguished.” 

A celebrated monument, or stone tablet, was 
discovered in Singanfoo, China, by the Jesuits, 
in 1625, on which is engraved a history of the 


CHINA. 


129 


Nestorian missions in China for one hundred 
and forty-five years—from A.D. 636 to 781. 

“In the eleventh century,” it is said, “the 
missionary zeal of the Nestorians was stimu¬ 
lated by the remarkable conversion of a Mogul 
prince called, after his conversion, Presbyter , 
or Prester John , whose subjects, two hundred 
thousand in number, became nominal Chris¬ 
tians. His domains are supposed to have been 
on the northern borders of China Proper.” It 
is also said that “ the last of this race cf Chris¬ 
tian kings was slain by Genghis Khan, about 
the year 1202,” and the last of the Nestorians 
were expelled from China by the Moham¬ 
medans. 

In the thirteenth century the Roman Cath¬ 
olics began missionary work in China. A 
priest by the name of Corvino arrived in In¬ 
dia in 1288, preached to the people for one 
year, baptized a hundred persons, then trav¬ 
eled into China, where he built a church and 
preached for eleven years. He baptized nearly 
six thousand persons in the time. This good 
man died when eighty years of age, in 1328, 
and more than three thousand infidels were 
converted under his ministry. Mr. Williams 
says: “The Romish missionaries.had friends 
among the high families in the land, during 
9 


130 


MISSION STUDIES. 


the first one hundred years of their labors, be¬ 
sides converts of both sexes. Few missions in 
pagan countries have been more favored with 
zealous converts, or their missionaries more 
aided and countenanced by rich and noble 
supporters than the early papal missions to 
China.” 

These missions have been sustained and the 
work extended. Theological and other schools 
have been established, and Sisters of Charity 
have taught many thousands of children, not 
only as they teach in other schools, but needle¬ 
work, and everything necessary to help them 
in leading useful lives; and yet, not withstand¬ 
ing all these efforts, and the success that at¬ 
tended them, the question has been seriously 
asked: What salutary effects has this large 
body of Christians wrought in the vast popu¬ 
lation of China during the last three hundred 
years? The answer comes: “ None; absolutely 
none that attract attention.” 

It was not until the beginning of the nine¬ 
teenth century that the attention of Protestant 
Ghristians was directed to China as a mission 
field. That largo empire had been closed to 
foreigners, and especially to missionaries, and 
it seemed impossible to find an entrance; but 
there were large numbers of Chinese emi- 


CHINA. 


131 


grants in the islands of the Indian Archipela¬ 
go, and previous to this time some effort had 
been made to Christianize them, with the hope 
'that through them the gospel might reach the 
perishing multitudes in China Proper. Some 
good was accomplished in this way. 

Early in the sixteenth century the Portu¬ 
guese had a settlement in Macao, a small 
commercial place sixty or seventy miles south¬ 
east of Canton, in the southern part of China, 
and the headquarters of Catholic missions. 
At a college in Macao many Chinese youth 
were educated, and became preachers of the 
gospel in different parts of China. It was not 
until 1806 that the London Missionary Society 
was able to send its first representative as a 
missionary to China, and this was accomplished 
through the kindly interest of an American 
mercantile house: Olyphant & Co., of New 
York. 

Lev. Kobert Morrison, it is said, may be re¬ 
garded, under God, as the father of Protestant 
missions in China.” He had studied the lan¬ 
guage under a native, then in England, and 
was well prepared to enter upon his work, 
when he embarked in January, 1807. 

He came from England to New York, where 
Mr. Madison, then Secretary of State, gave 


132 


MISSION STUDIES. 


liim a letter of introduction to the United 
States Consul at Canton. He was not allowed 
to do any missionary work after he reached 
Canton, but his chief purpose in going had 
been to translate the Holy Scriptures into the 
Chinese language, knowing that the Word of 
God must be the entering wedge and the “ open 
sesame ” to this darkened empire. 

He began work on a dictionary and gram¬ 
mar, and also other elementary books. His 
revision of the Acts of the Apostles, in 1810, 
was the first portion of the Bible ever printed 
in Chinese by any Protestant missionary. 
Two years later, in 1812, fhe Gospel according 
to St. Luke was published, and other portions 
were printed as fast as he could complete 
them. 

In July, 1813, Bev. M. Milne was sent to 
his aid, and made such rapid proficiency in 
the study of the language that he was able to 
assist Dr. Morrison in his translations. Three 
years later Mr. Milne established, with Mr. 
Morrison’s help, an Anglo-Chinese College in 
Malacca, where he died in 1822. 

Mr. Morrison baptized the first convert to 
Christianity in 1814. His name was Tsae Ako, 
and he continued faithful until his death, in 
1818. In November of that year, after twelve 


CHINA. 


133 


years of laborious effort, the translation of the 
Bible was completed and published. It was 
considered a wonderful work. 

In 1821 Dr. Morrison’s wife died. This year 
he completed his Chinese Dictionary, which 
has been an invaluable help to commerce and 
to Christian missions. It was published by 
the East India Company at an expense of 
£15,000 ($75,000). 

In 1822 Rev. William H. Medhurst was 
sent to reenforce the China Mission on the is¬ 
land of Java, and later went into China. 

In 1824 Dr. Morrison returned to England, 
where he was received with distinguished 
honors. His seventeen years of hard service 
as a missionary justly gave him a cordial wel¬ 
come from the people. 

In 1826, after his marriage to Miss Arm¬ 
strong, of Liverpool, he again set sail for 
China, where he continued to labor. In 1832 
he wrote: “I have been twenty-five years in 
China, and am now beginning to see the work 
prosper. By the press we have been able to 
scatter knowledge far and wide.” 

“ Two years later, in August, 1834, this de¬ 
voted missionary was called from his earthly 
labors to his home in heaven. His remains 
were taken to Macao for interment. China 


134 


MISSION STUDIES. 


shall yet rise up and call him blessed.” After 
his death the mission was left without any one 
to look after its interests. The native con¬ 
verts were scattered by persecutions, and noth¬ 
ing more was done in this mission by the Lon¬ 
don Missionary Society for fourteen years. 

In 1829 Bev. E. C. Bridgman was sent to 
China by the American Board of Commission¬ 
ers for Foreign Missions, accompanied by Bev. 
David Abeel, who went out to labor among the 
seamen, under the Seaman’s Friend Society, 
but he afterwards joined Mr. Bridgman in the 
work of the Board. After making himself ac¬ 
quainted with the language, Mr. Bridgman es¬ 
tablished, in 1831, the Chinese Repository, and 
became the editor. He continued in this posi¬ 
tion for sixteen years, preaching also to the 
foreign residents in Canton. He afterward 
went to Shanghai, where this paper is now 
published, and assisted in a translation of the 
Scriptures. Still later he opened a mission 
there, assisted by the reenforcements that had 
come to his aid. 

After laboring in China many years, Mr. 
Bridgman gave the following picture of the 
Chinese people, which is as true now as it was 
then: “The longer I live in this country the 
more do I see of the wickedness of this people, 


CHINA. 


135 


the more do I see the necessity of great ef¬ 
forts to bring them to a knowledge of the 
truth. The great bulk of the people know not 
God nor his truth. They are the willing serv¬ 
ants of sin; they love unrighteousness, and 
there is no wickedness which they will not com¬ 
mit. All that Paul said of the ancient heathen 
is true of the Chinese, and true to an extent that 
is dreadful. Their inmost soul, their very 
conscience, seems to be seared, dead, so in¬ 
sensible 'that they are, as regards the future 
life, like the beasts that perish. It often fills 
my heart with inexpressible sorrow to see what 
I see, to hear what I hear. No painting, no 
imagination, can portray and lay before the 
Christian world the awful sins, the horrible 
abominations, which fill the land.” 

We know that this is still the condition of 
people; and though since this was written 
many hundreds of missionaries have been 
sent out by many different Boards, yet the cry 
is still the same: the supply is not equal to 
the demand of the millions who are beginning 
to awaken out of the slumber of ages, and cry 
for “ more light.” 

In 1833 the American Board of Foreign 
Commissioners sent Mr. S. Wells Williams, 
then in his twentieth year, to China, to take 


136 


MISSION STUDIES. 


charge of their printing presses. He remained 
there many years, and is the author of “ The 
Middle Kingdom,” an elaborate description of 
the Chinese Empire and its inhabitants. He 
was accompanied by Bev. Ira Tracy, and in 
June, 1834, Dr. Peter Parker arrived in Can¬ 
ton and began medical work. 

The Protestant Episcopal Church of Amer¬ 
ica appointed Bev. Henry Lockwood and Bev. 
P. B. Hanson to China for missionary work, 
and they arrived in Canton in October, 1835, 
but went on to Java, and afterwards extended 
their work into the interior, where it was suc¬ 
cessful for many years. 

The American Baptist Missionary Union be¬ 
gan work in Siam in 1833, and when the Chi¬ 
nese ports were opened Bev. Mr. Dean estab¬ 
lished work at Hong Kong, and afterwards 
several stations were formed on the mainland, 
with the reenforcements received from time 
to time. 

In 1835 Bev. J. L. Shuck and wife arrived 
in China, where they labored faithfully. Mrs. 
Shuck was a native of Virginia, and the first 
lady missionary sent to China. 

The American Presbyterians began their 
first mission to the Chinese in 1838. “ From 

this time on,” it is said, “ societies and labor- 


CHINA. 


137 


ers rapidly increased. The opening of nine 
additional ports, by the treaty of Tientsin, in¬ 
creased the opportunities, and the travels of 
Dr. Giitzlaff aroused new interest, until nearly 
forty societies are represented in that great 
empire.” 


CHAPTER XL 


CHINA (CONTINUED). 

C HINA was a sealed book to all foreigners 
until in 1842 tlie first “Opium War” be¬ 
tween England and China caused the opening 
of five of the principal ports, when foreigners 
were admitted as residents, and “ the island of 
Hong Kong was ceded to the British.” 

It was a strange working together of all 
things, even of this dreadful war, so iniqui¬ 
tous in its motives, and a wonderful result 
was achieved, turning the wicked and selfish 
greed of England into a blessing instead of 
the curse that might have, and to some extent 
did follow. The Chinese Empire was unsealed, 
and five doors were simultaneously opened to 
the gospel. These five ports were Shanghai, 
Amoy, Foochow, Ningpo, and Canton. Some 
missionary work had been done, but almost 
entirely on the islands near the coasts, and the 
missionaries felt that all they could do was 
merely preparatory. They found occupation, 
however, for all their time in learning that 
most difficult language, and in translating the 
(138) 


CHINA. 


139 


Scriptures and other good books. When the 
ports were opened the missionaries of the dif¬ 
ferent societies moved to the mainland of 
China Proper and felt that “a great and 
effectual door ” had been opened to them. 

The London Missionary Society took ad¬ 
vantage of these improved privileges, and in 
1843 eight members of this mission met for 
consultation, and decided to remove their 
Anglo-Chinese College from Malacca to Hong 
Kong and change it to a theological school for 
training young men as native ministers. 

Benjamin Hobson, M.D., opened a hospital 
at Canton in 1848, and was assisted by a Chi¬ 
nese convert who had the distinction of being 
baptized by Dr. Milne, and ordained by Dr. 
Morrison. This Chinaman and Dr. Hobson 
held their religious services every Sabbath, 
which were well attended, and a great number 
availed themselves of the medical aid offered 
them. 

A medical missionary society had been 
formed at Canton “ by the joint efforts of the 
missionaries and the large-hearted merchants 
residing in the city,” and this was the result 
of the medical work of Dr. Peter Parker, 
which he began there in 1834. Dr. Hobson 
afterwards removed to Macao, where a medical 


140 


MISSION STUDIES. 


mission was established, and for five years lie 
labored incessantly. Though he could see but 
few results, he was sure that favorable im¬ 
pressions had been made and much strong 
opposition to the gospel had been overcome. 

At Shanghai, in 1843, Dr. Medhurst and Dr. 
Lockhart opened the first Protestant mission 
that was established in that city, and met with 
encouraging success. The work extended in 
every direction into the interior, then to other 
large cities, which also became centers of mis¬ 
sionary work. Medical work was also begun 
in Shanghai, and added greatly to the effect¬ 
iveness and power of the mission. 

Mr. Medhurst moved his valuable printing 
establishment from Batavia to Shanghai, and 
this was a most profitable and successful ally 
in their missionary work. Books and tracts 
were published, and a much greater interest 
awakened in the minds of the people. 

It is said: “During the year ending May, 
1847, 34,400 copies of different works were 
printed, and about 500 tracts had been given 
weekly to the attendants on the religious 
services, besides those distributed in the hos¬ 
pital, in the neighboring villages, and on the 
junks trading to Peking and other cities.” 

About this time, or the year previous, 1846, 


CHINA. 


141 


Mr. Williams returned home and published 
his “Middle Kingdom,” which is said to be 
one of the most valuable books ever printed 
about the Chinese Empire and its people. He 
returned to China in 1848. 

Dr. Ball, his wife, and daughter commenced 
an interesting work among the women, and 
forty or fifty attended the services. This was 
“ an important advance ” in the work and in 
the ideas concerning the ability of women to 
understand Christian truth as well as in the 
liberty granted them. 

Time and space would fail to tell of all the 
reenforcements and of the general impetus 
given to mission work by the many societies 
established in China, and we must necessarily 
omit mention of many, but an intelligent idea of 
the work of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
will be of especial interest to all Methodists. 

The treaty of Tientsin had opened nine ad¬ 
ditional ports, and these were indeed oppor¬ 
tunities or “ open ports ” to every Church that 
was represented in the empire. 

The General Missionary Committee of the 
Methodist Church in the United States had 
often thought of establishing a mission in 
China, but the thought did not develop into 
fact until 1847. 


142 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Kev. Moses C. White and Judson D. Collins 
were the first missionaries sent, and they 
reached the end of their long and perilous 
journey in August, 1847. They were soon 
settled in Foochow, studying the language, dis¬ 
tributing books and tracts, and Mr. White 
practicing medicine. In October of the same 
year Kev. Mr. Hickok and Kev. Kobert C. 
Maclay arrived to assist them, but the former 
W’as soon compelled to return to America. 

The three who remained opened schools, and 
in 1849 they had fifty pupils as an average at¬ 
tendance. From this time on the work of this 
Church has increased wonderfully, until at 
the last session of the General Missionary 
Committee, which convened in Minneapolis 
on November 9, 1893, $118,711 was appropri¬ 
ated to their work in China. The Woman’s 
Foreign Missionary Society of this Church 
last year appropriated $17,500 to their grow¬ 
ing work in the Chinese Empire. 

The mission established in Foochow by the 
Methodist Episcopal Church in 1847 continued 
to prosper slowly from its small beginnings 
under the management of Messrs. Collins and 
Maclay, though ten years passed before they 
could claim any visible results in Church 
membership. 



CHINA. 


143 


In 1855 the first church was erected just 
outside of the city walls, and was called “ The 
Church of the True God.” Two years later 
the first convert was baptized. He was a man 
forty-seven years old, named “Ting Ang.” 
Before the close of the same year his wife and 
others, in all numbering fifteen, were received 
into the Church. 

As the work increased reenforcements ar¬ 
rived, and other stations were opened in many 
different cities. 

The Central China Mission and the North 
China Mission were founded with centers of 
work in Nanking, Kukiang, and others for the 
former; and Peking, Tientsin, and Tsunliua 
for the latter. 

In 1881 the West China Mission was 
opened, with headquarters at Chunking. The 
Biblical Institute, the Anglo-Chinese College, 
and the Foochow Press were all blessed with 
unusual prosperity. A late letter in regard 
to this work at the present time says, “ The 
work steadily advances, and this entire region 
is gradually being permeated by the influence 
of the gospel, ” and Bev. W. N. Brewster says 
of another district: “This field is ripe; all we 
need are reapers with sharp sickles and willing 
hands.” These remarks are true of all the 


144 


MISSION STUDIES. 


districts where the work has been well estab¬ 
lished. Statistics are not always pleasant 
reading, but to those who read between the 
lines, and realize the facts, there are many 
pages of romance, of keen suffering and self- 
denial, of hope deferred, of thrilling inci¬ 
dents, of heroic endeavor, and of “patient 
continuance in welldoing,” that are all hid¬ 
den under the symbols representing numer¬ 
ical missionary work. The first ten years of 
sowing by this Church in China yielded only 
one member, that soon increased to fifteen, 
and in forty-two years steadily grew until 
there were 4,842 regular members and 3,879 
probationers. The number of missionaries in 
1892 were 44, with 39 assistants and 71 native 
preachers. Rapid advancement had been 
made in medical work, and also in the work 
of the Woman’s Foreign Missionary Society 
in schools and hospitals, and the work of Bi¬ 
ble women or deaconesses. Too much cannot 
be said in praise of the work so successfully 
carried on in China by the women of this 
Church. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 
made a call for missionaries to go to China 
soon after its separation from the Methodist 
Episcopal Church in 1834; but it was not 



CHINA. 


145 


until April 12, 1848, tliafc the two missionaries 
who responded were ready to sail from Boston 
harbor to make their homes among the Chi¬ 
nese people, a people then little known in 
America. Bev. Charles Taylor and Benjamin 
Jenkins, with their families, arrived at Hong 
Kong on August 12,1848. 

Shanghai, in the Kiangsu Province, was the 
place chosen to locate and begin the w T ork. 
Dr. Jenkins was compelled by the ill health 
of his wife to remain in Hong Kong, and could 
not join Dr. Jenkins until in May, 1849. As 
pioneers in missionary work in every land 
they had their difficulties, but kept brave 
hearts, doing all they could to study the lan¬ 
guage and communicate the truths of the gos¬ 
pel to the natives. Dr. Taylor purchased 
land, and a small chapel was erected; two 
schools were established, and for a time were 
successful in attracting pupils. 

Dr. I. G. John, in his “Hand Book of Meth¬ 
odist Missions,” says: “In 1851 the hearts of 
the missionaries rejoiced over the first fruits 
of their toil. Liew-sieng-sang, Dr. Jenkins’s 
teacher, and his wife renounced Buddhism and 
accepted the religion of Christ. . . . A large 
company of Chinese filled the chapel when he 
and his wife were baptized. At the end of 
10 


140 


MISSION STUDIES. 


the service Liew ascended the pulpit and ad¬ 
dressed the congregation, setting forth his 
reasons for abandoning idolatry and embrac¬ 
ing Christ. He soon commenced preaching, 
and often hundreds listened to his message. 
Dr. Cunnyngham thus mentions our first na¬ 
tive preacher: £ He possessed a vigorous mind, 
quick apprehension, ready and fluent utter¬ 
ance, with a warm and noble heart.’ ” 

After three years had passed Mr. Jenkins 
was compelled to take his wife to America, on 
account of failing health; but before reaching 
home she died, and was buried at sea near the 
island of St. Helena,. Two years later Mr. 
Jenkins returned to China, and continued in 
the work until 1862, when he resigned. He 
died in 1863, and was buried at Shanghai. 

Dr. Taylor remained in China five years, 
until the health of his' wife failed, and then 
returned to the United States. 

In October, 1852, Dr. W. G. E. Cunnyng¬ 
ham and his wife arrived in China, after a 
voyage of six months, and began the laborious 
task of learning the language and preparing 
for the work they were both eager to under¬ 
take. 

When Dr. Taylor returned to America in 
1853, Dr. Cunnyngham was placed in charge 



CHINA. 


147 


of the mission; but the civil war, called the 
Taiping Rebellion, began about that time, and 
many troubles and hindrances incident to the 
war prevented a vigorous prosecution of mis¬ 
sionary work. Their one small chapel and 
their houses were burned; but, though their 
lives were frequently endangered, they suffered 
no personal violence. Even in these tumul¬ 
tuous times Dr. Cunnyngliam wrote the most 
stirring appeals to the Church at home, say¬ 
ing: “We want one thousand preachers for 
China. Who will come? ” 

In 1854 there was a response to these urgent 
calls, and Dr. Jenkins, who had again married 
while in the United States, returned to China, 
accompanied by Revs. J. W. Lambuth, J. L. 
Belton, and D. C. Kelley, M.D., with their 
wives, all enthusiastic, earnest, and hopeful. 
The war had not yet closed; but the new mis¬ 
sionaries applied themselves to the study of 
the language, in the hope that a way would 
soon be opened to enlarge the mission by 
founding new stations in the interior. 

In another letter to the Church papers at 
home the superintendent said: “Mrs. Cun- 
nyngham has an interesting school of little 
gir]s under her care. She gives each girl ten 
cash a day, which amounts with her present 


148 


MISSION STUDIES. 


number to nearly four dollars per month. This, 
with the teacher’s wages and incidental ex¬ 
penses, makes the school cost eight or nine 
dollars per month. . . . Mrs. Cunnyng- 

liain has translated ‘ Peep of Day ’ and some 
portions of the Scriptures; also a catechism 
on the Old Testament, and one on ‘ The Har¬ 
mony of the Gospels.’ ” These items give 
but a glimpse of the work accomplished by 
the missionary pioneers of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, South, in China; a work 
which was an industrious sowing of the word 
by preaching on the streets in the open air, 
distributing tracts and portions of the Gos¬ 
pels, and by private conversations and argu¬ 
ments with those who would listen to the 
reading of the Scriptures and to the reasons 
for their faith in Christ, an earnest sowing of 
gospel truth in the minds of children in day 
schools and Sunday schools, in hymns and 
prayers that were blessed by the Holy Spirit 
to produce abundant fruit in the future. 

As soon as Mrs. Lambuth could do so she 
opened another school for girls, which after¬ 
wards became a prosperous boarding school 
under her skillful management. In the mean¬ 
time Bev. Mr. Belton’s health failed, and in 
one year after his arrival in China he returned 




CHINA. 


149 


to America, and died very soon after liis ar¬ 
rival in New York, and in 1856 Dr. D. C. Kel¬ 
ley, after a stay of eighteen months in this 
land of disease and death, was compelled to 
return home on account of his wife’s failing 
health. Once again the missionary force was 
reduced to three. 

It was not until 1858 that the treaty took 
effect which allowed the missionaries to ex¬ 
tend their work into the interior of the prov¬ 
ince, and not until 1859 that the mission pro¬ 
jected in Soochow, ninety miles northwest of 
Shanghai, could be founded. 

In January, 1860, a Sunday school was 
opened with forty pupils, including a class 
each from Mrs. Cunnyngham’s and Mrs. 
Lambuth’s schools; weekly prayer meetings 
and class meetings were held, showing that 
the native converts, though only eleven in 
number, were truly in earnest and “ rich 
in good works.” These were considered 
marked evidences of genuine success. 

On July 13, 1860, Kevs. Young J. Allen 
and Mr. L. Wood arrived in China as reen¬ 
forcements to the mission. The war in China 
was still relentlessly devastating homes and 
villages, so there was little opportunity for 
extending the work into the regions beyond, 


150 


MISSION STUDIES. 


even if those who had endured so many dis¬ 
appointments in trying to keep up the work 
had been able to do so. 

The health of both Mr. and Mrs. Cunnyng- 
ham had failed, and two English physicians 
declared it their opinion that neither of them 
could live through another summer in China. 
For several months Mr. Cunnyngham had 
been unable to do any missionary work, and 
his health was growing worse instead of bet¬ 
ter; his wife had been prostrated by a severe 
attack of Asiatic cholera, from w T hich she 
could not rally in that debilitating climate, 
and they were therefore compelled to return 
home. They left China on October 5, 1861. 
The embarrassments in the field occasioned by 
the Civil War, which they found raging in the 
United States, and the apparent disorganiza¬ 
tion of the Church in the South, were far 
more serious than those caused by the Taiping 
Rebellion in China, and the difficulty in col¬ 
lecting funds for the mission was even greater 
than the transmission of them through block¬ 
aded ports to the foreign field. 

After the close of the war in the United 
States five or six years passed before any 
funds could be collected for missionary work 
abroad, and Drs. Lambuth and Allen were 



CHINA. 


151 


compelled to support tlieir families by trans¬ 
lating, teaching, and editorial work for the 
Chinese Government, as they were not receiv¬ 
ing a dollar from home. 

When the Board of Missions began to re¬ 
sume its work in China, Mr. and Mrs. Cun- 
nyngham had regained their health, but the 
Board had funds scarcely sufficient to support 
those already in the field, and as twenty years 
had passed since they had first gone out in 
their youth and strength to China, Mr. Cun- 
nyngliam believed that vigorous young men 
were needed, who would be able to go into the 
interior, where they would have to learn new 
dialects and found work entirely new. These 
were some of the considerations, besides the 
education of their two children, that prevented 
them from returning to China. 

In the meantime Dr. Allen continued in 
charge of the Anglo-Chinese School, under 
the patronage of the Chinese Government, 
and in 1868 began the publication of a reli¬ 
gious paper called the Chinese Globe Mag¬ 
azine , in this way reaching a class of edu¬ 
cated persons otherwise entirely outside of 
missionary influence. He surrendered his 
part of the appropriation from the Board to 
Bev. J. W. Lambuth, which enabled Dr. 


152 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Lambutk to extend his travels, superintend 
the work in Soockow and Nantziang, and lie 
took with liim tlie native preacher Dzau, 
known as C. K. Marshall, who was supported 
by Dr. Deems’s church in New York. 

Dr. John’s “ Hand Book of Methodist Mis¬ 
sions” gives a detailed account of the mission 
from this time to its present state of prosperity. 

The first work attempted by the Woman’s 
Missionary Society of the Methodist Episco¬ 
pal Church, South, after its organization in 
1878, was to send a missionary that year to 
China. Miss Locliie Bankin was ready to go, 
and the money had been collected to begin 
work in China for women and children. 

Mrs. J. W. Lambutk had previously opened 
a boarding school for girls in Shanghai, a 
building had been purchased, and the school 
partially supported for several years by a 
number of women in the Church before the 
society was authorized to work as a corporate 
body by the General Conference. Miss 
Bankin was joined the next year by her sister 
Dora, and new work was opened at Nantziang. 
From time to time reenforcements were sent 
out by the Woman’s Board, and w T ork was 
well organized in three districts, all in the 
Kiang-su Province. 


CHINA. 


153 


At the present time (August, 1894) there 
are 16 representatives of the Woman’s Board, 
4 boarding schools, and 758 pupils. There 
are 52 native helpers, 6 Bible women, 1 hos¬ 
pital, and 2 medical missionaries. One thou¬ 
sand seven hundred and fifty-one patients 
were treated last year. 

The property of the Woman’s Board in 
China lias been valued at $60,000. Woman’s 
work in all its departments has been eminently 
successful. 

Within the last ten years China has emerged 
from obscurity, its dreadful apathy and in¬ 
ertness, and is beginning to take a place 
among the important nations of the world. 

Judson Smith, D.D., when writing of the 
missionary problem in China, said: ‘‘The di¬ 
mensions and significance of the missionary 
problem in China grow upon the thought of 
the Christian world from year to year. All 
things considered, this is the fieljd of supreme 
difficulty, and at the same time it is the field 
of supreme interest. The Chinese are mani¬ 
festly the governing race of Eastern and Cen¬ 
tral Asia. Their national qualities and their 
geographical position make them so. They 
evidently hold the key to the future of almost 
one-lialf the unevangelized people of the 


154 


MISSION STUDIES. 


globe. So long as they remain without the 
gospel, the great bulk of Asia will be pagan; 
when they are evangelized, the continent will 
be Christian, and the world will be won.” 

The China Inland Mission. 

Much has been written concerning the mis¬ 
sionary operations of different societies and 
Churches in China, and it now remains to 
give an account of the work performed by an 
interdenominational mission organized by J. 
Hudson Taylor. 

The formation of the China Inland Mission 
in 1865 was the result of a series of providen¬ 
tial circumstances and movements that had 
gradually opened the minds and hearts of the 
people of England to “the overwhelming ne¬ 
cessity for some further effort to spread the 
knowledge of the gospel among the unevan¬ 
gelized millions of China . . . in the interior 
provinces.” 

Dr. Gutzhalf, a medical missionary, went to 
China in 1826, under the auspices of the 
Netherlands Society, but in a few years dis¬ 
solved his connection with it, and under¬ 
took the independent work which he had 
longed to do since a boy of eighteen, when 
he had first offered himself. He was an 


CHINA. 


155 


earnest colaborer with Drs. Morrison and 
Medliurst in translating the Bible into Chi¬ 
nese; also in the practice of his profession. 
In 1849 he visited England, and by his re¬ 
ports and addresses to the people he aroused 
an unusual interest in the benighted Chinese, 
among whom he had been living for more than 
twenty years. A society w~as formed there in 
1850 to aid his work, and in 1851 he returned 
to China. In August of the same year he died. 
This society proved unsuccessful in its plans, 
and was changed, becoming known as the 
Chinese Evaugelization Society. Mr. J. Hud¬ 
son Taylor was the first representative sent, and 
sailed in 1853, landing in China in the third 
or fourth month of the year 1854. 

Mr. Taylor worked under the direction of 
this society for three years, and then con¬ 
cluded he could accomplish more good by a 
“friendly separation” from the home society, 
and determined to begin an independent work, 
as he was “ confirmed in the conviction that it 
was safe to trust in the promises of God for 
the supply in answer to prayer of all needs, 
pecuniary and otherwise, of the work to which 
he calls his servants.” 

In the words of Miss Geraldine Guinness, 
when reviewing Mr. Taylor’s work in China: 


156 


MISSION STUDIES. 


“ The society that had sent him to China was 
considerably in debt, ancl the quarterly bills 
which Mr. Taylor and his colleagues were in¬ 
structed to draw were often met with borrowed 
money. Deeply feeling that the command 
£ Owe no man anything ’ condemned such a 
position, Mr. Taylor was obliged to resign 
official connection with the committee, al¬ 
though continuing to correspond and send 
home his journals as long as the society ex¬ 
isted. Thus early in the new year he was en¬ 
tirely cast upon God for daily provision and 
supplies, and commenced that life of faitli 
which so many have been inspired to follow.” 

Failing health, near the close of the year 
1860, required Mr. Taylor to return to En¬ 
gland; and so strong were his appeals, even 
before leaving China, for more laborers that 
other men were soon ready to take his place. 
He did not, however, relax his efforts, but ap¬ 
pealed to Christians of all denominations for 
volunteers to go to China, “ without any guar¬ 
antees beyond those contained in the Scrip¬ 
tures to carry the gospel to these needy ones.” 
In this way the mission became interdenomi¬ 
national. 

Mr. Taylor says: “The China Inland Mis¬ 
sion was now definitely formed (in 1865), and 


CHINA. 


157 


Mr. Meadow and the other workers (in China) 
were incorporated in it. On May 26, 1866, I 
sailed for China in the ‘ Lammermuir,’ with 
the first large party of volunteers, and the 
work has subsequently been continued on the 
same lines.” 

Previous to the organization of the China 
Inland Mission there were about ninety-seven 
missionaries in China, and these were all at 
work in the six seaboard provinces and one 
in the interior of Hupeh. In the other eleven 
provinces, it is said, there was not one resi¬ 
dent Protestant missionary. 

Before the close of the year a large party 
of missionaries had begun work in six differ¬ 
ent stations in the Chekiang Province. In 
about eight years, or at the close of the year 
1874, they had 21 missionaries at work, besides 
70 male native assistants and 6 Bible women. 

We quote from a report, which says: “In 
the year 1875 advances were made. At the 
beginning of this year an appeal for prayer 
was put forth that during the year eighteen 
men might be raised up for the work of evan¬ 
gelization in the nine provinces which were 
still without Protestant missionaries. These 
prayers were answered; and though all did not 
proceed to China immediately, eleven new 


158 


MISSION STUDIES. 


missionaries were added to the number of la¬ 
borers in that year, and eight new stations 
were opened. In 1876 three new stations 
were opened, and thirteen missionaries were 
added to the force already in the field. In 
1877 seven new stations were opened in four 
other provinces. In 1878 eighteen missiona¬ 
ries opened work at six other stations. In 
1879 the work continued, with nine new mis¬ 
sionaries, and four new stations opened.” 

In 1880 the report says: “A most interest¬ 
ing feature of the work of this year is the be¬ 
ginning of work among the women of Western 
China. For the first time in the history of 
missions in China, European ladies have en¬ 
tered the provinces of Shen-si, Sich’uen, and 
Kweichow. Though the first foreign ladies 
ever seen in Western China, they have been 
enabled to settle quietly and carry on their 
work without molestation. Large numbers of 
Chinese women have visited them.” 

The report continues: “Two of these ladies 
(Miss Wilson and Miss Eaussett) traveled 
from Wu-chang to Han-chung, in the province 
of Shen-si, a distance of about onfc thousand 
miles, on the river Han, without European 
escort. The journey took nearly three months 
—viz., from February 28 to May 21—and was 


CHINA. 


159 


safely accomplished. Upon arriving at Han- 
cliung they found Mr. and Mrs. King working 
amidst much encouragement, and almost im¬ 
mediately they had abundant openings for 
work among the women and children.” 

At this time (1880) the mission had 70 sta¬ 
tions in 11 provinces, with 70 missionaries, 
the wives of 26 missionaries, and about 100 
native helpers. 

Before the close of the year 1884, 76 new 
workers were received by this mission in 
China, and “widespread interest was awak¬ 
ened at home, which continued to grow,” and 
three years later Mr. Taylor again returned 
to England laden with another prayer for 
more workers. His desires on this line seemed 
insatiable, and his faith unbroken. 

Miss Guinness says: “The seventy had in¬ 
deed been given, but on all hands the rapidly 
developing work needed more laborers. A 
few weeks before he left the shores of China 
the leaders of the mission assembled at Gan- 
k’ing had registered a definite request in 
heaven, uniting to ask for a hundred new 
missionaries to reinforce their ranks during 
the following year. 

“The tidings caused a thrill of surprise at 
home. Surely the men must be very foolish 


160 


MISSION STUDIES. 


who would make such a request. A faith mis¬ 
sion that had already almost doubled its num¬ 
bers since 1881; that had no guarantee funds 
to fall back on in case of emergency; a mis¬ 
sion that would not go into debt or beg for 
money under any circumstances —such a mis¬ 
sion to ask for a hundred new workers in one 
year! What could they be thinking of? 

“Ah, they were thinking of the vast needs 
of China; of the shortness of the time; of the 
Master’s great command disobeyed and unre¬ 
garded by the Church; and of the boundless 
resources of their God. One hundred at any 
rate were needed, and for one hundred they 
would pray. 

“ Upon Mr. Taylor’s arrival in England he 
found, to his deep thankfulness, that already 
thirty of the number had been given, and al¬ 
most half the money they required was in 
hand. Thus once again God honored his peo¬ 
ple’s faith. And New Year’s Day, 1888, saw 
the last party of the hundred well on their 
way to China, 

“ Six years have passed since then, and we 
stand on the threshold of 1894. 

“ Great and cheering has been the progress 
of ‘these forty years.’ At their commence¬ 
ment, as we have seen, missionary work in 


CHINA. 


161 


China was still in its earliest stages. Five 
centers only were occupied by Protestant 
agencies, and all the inland provinces were 
utterly unreached. Now, in the China Inland 
Mission alone, five hundred and sixty workers, 
from many lands and various sections of the 
Church of Christ, are laboring in more than 
a hundred stations, scattered throughout four¬ 
teen provinces. Women’s work has been de¬ 
veloped in scores of inland cities. And over 
four thousand native Christians are gathered 
in connection with us. 

“ Other agencies have also grown rapidly, 
so that at the present time more than fifty 
missions, with a staff of sixteen hundred 
workers, are to be found in China. And yet 
the remaining need is vast, appalling! What 
words can utter it? 

“All the converts gathered into all the 
Christian Churches only number about forty 
thousand to-day; so small a proportion, com¬ 
pared to the overwhelming population of 
China, that the average death rate alone would 
far exceed it within two days. 

“A thousand every hour they are passing 
into the darkness, with no hope beyond the 
grave, one only among six thousand of the 
dying being ready for that great change. 

11 


162 


MISSION STUDIES. 


“We too are swiftly passing. Even dur¬ 
ing this new year we may be called into His 
presence whose love has lighted time and 
eternity for us. One great command he left 
us: that we should love as he has loved. 
Have we done this? Are we so doing now? ” 
The following table was prepared by Dr. 
L. H. Gulick, and gives the name of each so¬ 
ciety and the date when they began work in 
China: 

London Missionary Society.. 

American Board of Commissioners. 

American Baptist, North. 

American Protestant Episcopal. 

American Presbyterian, North. 

American Reformed (Dutch). 

British and Foreign Bible Society. 

Church Missionary Society. 

English Baptist... 

Methodist Episcopal, North. 

Seventh Day Baptist. 

American Baptist, South. 

Basle Mission. 

English Presbyterian.,... 

Rhenish Mission. 

Methodist Episcopal, South.... 

Berlin Foundling Hospital. 

Wesleyan Missionary Society.. 

Woman’s Union Mission...* 

Methodist New Connection. 

Society for Promotion of Female Education 


1807 

1830 

1834 

1835 
1838 

1842 

1843 

1844 

1845 
1847 
1847 
1847 
1847 
1847 

1847 

1848 
1850 
1852 

1859 

1860 
1864 

























CHINA. 


163 


United Presbyterian, Scotch. 1865 

China Inland Mission. 1865 

National Bible Society of Scotland. 1868 

United Methodist Free Church. 1868 

American Presbyterian, South... 1868 

Irish Presbyterian. 1869 

Canadian Presbyterian. 1871 

Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. 1874 

American Bible Society.-. 1876 

Established Church of Scotland. 1878 

Berlin Mission. 1882 

General Protestant Evangelical Society. 1884 

Bible Christians. 1885 

Foreign Christian Missionary Society. 1886 

Book and Tract Society. 1886 

Society of Friends. 1886 

American Scandinavian Congregational. 1887 


Church of England Zenana Missionary Society.. 1888 

The same authority says: “There are in 
addition a number of independent workers.” 

Our readers will discover what an extensive 
task it would be to follow the workings of all 
these societies, but it is gratifying to know that 
so many have turned their attention to China. 



















CHAPTER XII. 


MADAGASCAR. 



AHE history of Missions in the different 


-L islands of the sea contain ssome of the 
most thrilling incidents and startling facts 
that have ever been written. It contains 
also some of the most wonderful records of 
successful missionary work. 

Madagascar is one of the most prominent in 
size and in the interest attached to its mission¬ 
ary annals; it is the third largest island in the 
world, Borneo and New Guinea exceeding it 
in size. It is situated on the eastern coast of 
Africa, with the Mozambique Channel, vary¬ 
ing in width from 220 to 540 miles, between 
the island and the mainland. In area Mada¬ 
gascar is larger than Great Britain and Ireland, 
and contains about 230,000 English square 
miles. It has been inhabited by twenty or 
thirty different independent tribes of people, 
the great mass of them of the Malay race. It 
is supposed that the original inhabitants were 
from some of the African races, probably the 
Zulus or Kafirs. 


(itR) 


MADAGASCAR. 


165 


The present inhabitants are known as Mala¬ 
gasy, and they speak different dialects of the 
same Malay language. The Hovas are the 
ruling tribe, and are lighter in complexion, 
“ frequently,” it is said, “ fairer than the Span¬ 
ish, Portuguese, or Italians. Their hair is 
black, but soft, fine, and straight or curling; 
their eyes are hazel, their figures erect, and, 
though small, are well proportioned; the hands 
and feet small, and their gait and movements 
agile, free, and graceful.” 

About one thousand years ago the Hovas, 
who were a more intelligent tribe than others, 
came to Madagascar from Malaysia. They 
possessed themselves of the land, and became 
greater in power, and subjugated many to their 
authority. 

Before missions were established in Mada¬ 
gascar they seem to have had no special re¬ 
ligious system that influenced their moral 
character. They believed in a supreme Being; 
but they had no just ideas of God, no public 
temples for worship, and no special priest¬ 
hood. If they had any religious system, it 
was like chaos is described by one of the old 
poets: “A rude and indigested mass, with dis¬ 
cordant seeds of things not well joined to¬ 
gether.” The name they gave the Supreme 


166 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Being, translated literally, means “Fragrant 
Prince.” 

Some Jewish, and some Mohammedan cus¬ 
toms prevail among the people, and one writer 
claims that, though gross vice and wickedness 
are so prevalent, the Malagasy “ have some re¬ 
deeming qualities. Parents are devoted to 
their offspring, and children are respectful to 
their parents. There is much genuine hospi¬ 
tality in the country, and warm and steady 
friendships exist. They are prepared for im¬ 
provement and for rapid advancement, under 
favorable circumstances.” 

Europeans made no effort to explore and 
colonize Madagascar until 1506, when the Por¬ 
tuguese undertook to enslave and Christianize 
the inhabitants. These efforts were continued 
for several hundred years, but with little suc¬ 
cess. The people would not submit, and the 
colonists were massacred without mercy. The 
English and Dutch were also engaged in the 
slave trade, and planted colonies for trading 
purposes at different points on the coast of the 
island. 

In 1642 the French founded colonies, and 
claimed that one of their objects was to Chris¬ 
tianize the people; but their dealings were so 
treacherous, and the characters of the priests 



MADAGASCAR. 


167 


were so corrupt, that their religion was despised 
and they compelled to surrender, until in 1811 
there were only two trading posts left on the 
island. 

In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries 
the Sakalavas were the ascendant tribe, and 
were divided into Northern and Southern. 

In the beginning of the present century the 
social and religious condition of these people 
was most deplorable. The tribes were con¬ 
tinually at war with each other, and all cap¬ 
tives were sold into slavery, and purchased by 
Christian nations! Each tribe was governed 
by its own chief, wdio held the members in 
bondage, and cruelty and injustice prevailed 
on every side. 

In 1810 the chief of the Hovas tribe died, 
aud his son Radama, a lad seventeen years of 
age, was proclaimed king of the Hovas. He 
had been educated in part by Arab teachers, 
“ was ambitious, intelligent, capable of read¬ 
ing character, shrewd and politic, and pos¬ 
sessed of that magnetic power over men which 
would compel them to do his will.” The peo¬ 
ple of his tribe were obedient and “capable 
of being made good soldiers.” He determined 
to throw off the yoke of the Sakalavas and be¬ 
come King of Madagascar. To accomplish 


1(58 


MISSION STUDIES. 


liis purpose lie was ready to agree to a treaty 
proposed by tlie English Governor of the Is¬ 
land of Mauritus, Sir Eobert Earquhar, who 
was determined to put down the slave trade, 
and needed the help of Eadama. 

This young king determined to educate the 
people, to reduce the language to writing, and 
to give his soldiers military instruction, that he 
might gain ascendency over the whole island 
of Madagascar. After negotiating several 
years, the treaty was finally signed and rati¬ 
fied on the 11th of October, 1820. 

In 1818, however, the London Missionary 
Society sent two missionaries (Eev. S. Bevan 
and Dr. Jones), with their families, to Mada¬ 
gascar. They were kindly received by some 
of the chiefs, and soon began to teach the 
children. Later they were all attacked with 
the deadly fever, and every one of the two 
families died except Mr. Jones. After the 
treaty with the English was ratified he was 
received cordially by Eadama, who gave full 
permission for Protestant missionaries to set¬ 
tle at his capital, and on the 8th of December, 
1820, the first mission school was opened at 
Tananarivo. 

It is said: “ The London Missionary Socie¬ 
ty, awake to its great opportunity, sent for- 


MADAGASCAR. 


169 


ward its missionaries, teachers, and artisans 
as rapidly as practicable, and very scon the 
mission work was prosecuted in all direc¬ 
tions.” The first work, of course, was the ac¬ 
quisition of the language and its reduction to 
writing. 

The representatives of the London Mission¬ 
ary Society went on with their work as rapidly 
as possible. “ The missionary teachers were 
preparing books in the Malagasy language; 
the artisans were teaching the people carpen¬ 
try, weaving, tanning, and blacksmith work; 
and a few printing presses having been sent 
out, and fonts of Malagasy type cast in En¬ 
gland, they were soon printing schoolbooks 
and portions of the Scriptures, and instruct¬ 
ing the young and teachable Malagasy boys 
in the art of printing.” 

As soon as the missionaries could command 
the language they began to preach the gospel, 
but the schools were the chief means of reach¬ 
ing the people. 

In less than ten years about one hundred 
schools had been established in and near the 
capital, and between 4,000 and 5,000 pupils 
were in attendance. The missionaries worked 
very hard to do good while they had oppor¬ 
tunity, and hastened the translation of the 


170 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Scriptures, then printed and circulated them 
as rapidly as they could. A church was or¬ 
ganized o£ English residents, who were active 
Christian workers. 

On the 27th of July, 1828, the king, Rada- 
ma, who had given them every encourage¬ 
ment, died. He was not a Christian, but “ he 
was patriotic, manly, and truthful.” “ The loss 
of such a ruler, at such a time, seemed the 
severest blow which could be inflicted on this 
infant mission; but God made it eventually 
the means of the greatest good.” 

Radama had chosen his nephew to succeed 
him; but one of his wives, who was “utterly 
unscrupulous and bloodthirsty,” ascended the 
throne as Ranavalona I., and her first official 
act was to put to death all of Radama’s kins¬ 
men who might resist her will. For the first 
seven years of her reign this wicked queen 
was too much absorbed in warfare with the 
French to take any notice of the w^ork done 
by the missionaries. Their labors had been 
greatly blessed. In 1831 many converts had 
been baptized, and a native church was or¬ 
ganized, with nearly 2,000 members. A few 
months later the queen began a series of per¬ 
secutions, prohibiting the Christians in many 
w r ays from carrying on their work until in 


MADAGASCAR. 


171 


1834, when no natives except those in govern¬ 
ment employ were allowed to learn to read and 
write. From this proclamation of the queen, 
it was evident that she had determined to put 
a stop to Christianity. 

In February, 1835, a letter was addressed to 
the missionaries, forbidding them to teach 
their religion, though they were permitted to 
teach the arts and sciences. In March “all 
religious meetings were prohibited, and spies 
commissioned to hunt the Christians and their 
forbidden books.” 

Troubles began to thicken about the devoted 
missionaries and the faithful natives. In the 
summer four of the missionaries were ordered 
by the queen to leave the country, but Messrs. 
Johns and Baker remained to comfort the lit¬ 
tle band that had not forsaken them. One 
year later these two were compelled to leave, 
however making an opportunity to preach 
once more on the text, “Lord, save us! we 
perish! ” 

Mr. Johns retreated to Mauritius, but re¬ 
turned to Madagascar in 1840, to try and help 
the few remaining Christians to escape from 
cruelty of the queen; but on his second visit, 
in 1843, he died with fever. 

It is said: “Greatly to the astonishment of 


172 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Queen Ranavalona, her plan for extinguishing 
Christianity in Madagascar had signally failed. 
She had closed the schools; prohibited all re¬ 
ligious meetings; sent away all the missiona¬ 
ries; confiscated all the portions of the Scrip¬ 
tures and religious books that she could find by 
her spies; degraded, fined, and whipped the 
Christians, and threatened them with severer 
punishment; and yet the number of Christians 
increased every day, and quietly, but persist¬ 
ently, all her decrees were set at naught. She 
determined upon severer measures, for she had 
sworn a solemn oath to root out Christianity 
if she had to put every Christian to death.” 

The most cruel tortures that the queen 
could invent were used in her persecutions of 
the Christians, and to her astonishment, in¬ 
stead of crushing them, the number steadily 
increased. 

For seventeen years the persecutions con¬ 
tinued, and many suffered martyrdom, by fire, 
by tortures, by being thrown from the Rock 
of Hurling, while many others were sold into 
slavery. Even when the son of the queen be¬ 
came a Christian, and gave all his influence 
for.their aid, the persecutions did not cease. 
From 1850 to 1857 they seemed to break out 
with renewed violence, and the queen “an- * 



MADAGASCAR. 


173 


nounced her determination to stamp out 
Christianity.” The results of her cruel per¬ 
secutions, however, were contrary to her de¬ 
sires. The little band of Christians grew 
stronger and stronger. 

On the 15th of August, 1861, deliverance 
came. The queen died, after a reign of thirty- 
five years. Twenty-five years of her reign 
had been spent in persecuting the Christians, 
but as in the days of Paul, they “went every¬ 
where, preaching the word.” Two days after 
her death, her son Radama II. became King 
of Madagascar; and Mr. Ellis, one of the mis¬ 
sionaries, says: “Before the sun had set he 
proclaimed equal protection to all the inhabit¬ 
ants, and declared that every man was free to 
worship God according to the dictates of his 
own conscience, without fear or danger.” 

Another writer says: “ The long-desired ju¬ 
bilee had come, and gladness and rejoicing 
everywhere prevailed. . . . Within a month 
after the queen’s decease eleven houses were 
opened for the worship of God in the capital 
and great numbers in the adjacent country, 
and churches were being erected everywhere.” 

The king, Radama, invited the missionaries 
of the London Missionary Society to return, 
and especially Rev. William Ellis. Very soon 


174 


MISSION STUDIES. 


other missionaries, physicians, teachers, and 
printers resumed the work that had been in¬ 
terrupted, and the 2,000 adherents to the 
Church in 1836 “had become 40,000,” and 
more than 100,000 persons had rejected their 
idols, and were ready to receive the truth. 

Radama II. was not himself a Christian, and 
was finally led into vices that caused a revolu¬ 
tion and his own death. 

Queen Rasoherina succeeded Radama II. to 
the throne; and though not a Christian, “she 
was a woman of good sense and integrity, and 
she carried out in good faith the agreement 
she had made, and even added many favors 
to the Christians.” During her reign the 
churches and the mission work prospered. 
Other societies established mission stations, 
and the work continued to grow. 

In 1868 Rasoherina died, and her niece, or 
cousin, Ramona, was proclaimed queen under 
the title of Ranavalona II.’ It is said that 
“on tlfis occasion, for the first time in the his¬ 
tory of Madagascar, no idols were brought 
forth to greet the new queen as she stood be¬ 
fore the people on the balcony of the great 
palace.” 

The prime minister was “ a man of extraor¬ 
dinary ability, and had been for years a student 



MADAGASCAR. 


175 


of the Scriptures. Changes were made one 
after another, and it soon became understood 
that Madagascar was to be a Christian king¬ 
dom, and that Ranavalona II. was to be the 
first Christian queen of the island.” 

When her coronation took place “ the royal 
canopy was emblazoned with Scripture texts, 
and an elegantly bound copy of the Malagasy 
Scriptures was placed conspicuously by her 
side, under the canopy, and on her return to 
the palace prayers were offered by one of the 
native pastors.” It is further stated: “The 
next month the queen, the prime minister, and 
the household of the palace met together for 
Christian worship, and this practice was main¬ 
tained daily during her whole reign.” Soon 
after this the queen and prime minister were 
both converted, and later w T ere married. “It 
was in their case a love match.” 

As it was the custom for each sovereign to 
erect some handsome building, Ranavalona II. 
built a stone church near the palace, and 
burned all the royal idols, saying to the peo¬ 
ple who protested: “I will burn all the idols 
of my ancestors; but as to yours, they are 
your concern.” After the idols were de¬ 
stroyed in all parts of the kingdom, it is said 
that “in a few days requests came from all 


176 


MISSION STUDIES. 


parts of the island: ‘You have destroyed our 
gods, and we know not how to worship accord¬ 
ing to the new religion; send us teachers.’ 
The prime minister called the missionaries to¬ 
gether, and after consultation 126 missionaries 
were sent out, belonging to the London Mis¬ 
sionary Society.” 

A marvelous change had taken place in fifty 
years. Then they were in the depths of hea¬ 
thenism; now there were “50,000 communi¬ 
cants and 150,000 adherents to the true re¬ 
ligion, many thousand scholars in the schools, 
and at least 1,500,000 asking for Christian in¬ 
struction.” We can imagine some of the dif¬ 
ficulties that beset this good queen over a 
heathenish and idolatrous people, who were 
just beginning to learn a few of the first prin¬ 
ciples of right living. 

In fifteen or twenty years her subjects had 
become an enlightened Christian nation. She 
established high schools and normal schools, 
and compelled the children to attend. She 
had many churches built, organized the gov¬ 
ernment, revised and enlarged the laws, es¬ 
tablished a judiciary system with trial by jury, 
abolished slavery, and with wise foresight and 
skill did everything that was possible to en¬ 
lighten and reform her people. 


MADAGASCAR. 


177 


The French Government, under the lead of 
the Jesuits, were the most bitter enemies to 
all these reforms of the queen, and made such 
unjust demands upon her that war seemed in¬ 
evitable, She pleaded with France not'to do 
her nation so great a wrong, and pleaded with 
England, Germany, and the United States to 
prevent it ; but a few kind messages were sent, 
and that was all! Our own United States was 
“ pitifully apathetic.” 

The queen was resolute, and called her peo¬ 
ple together in a grand assembly. She laid 
before them the demands of the French, told 
them all she had done, and asked them to say 
if she had done rightly. In the words of an¬ 
other: “ Her whole speech was quiet, just, and 
Christian, but determined. She could not 
manifest a hostile or bitter spirit, but she must 
defend and protect the land God had given to 
her fathers, and she did this, trusting only in 
God, who had made her sovereign of this peo¬ 
ple. He was her God and their God. Would 
they trust in him, and when they went to bat¬ 
tle, marching side by side with their queen, 
would they contend valiantly for their coum 
try?” It is said that the whole assembly, 
more than one hundred thousand persons, 
“were, ready to lay down their lives for the 
12 


178 


MISSION STUDIES. 


queen, and begged for tlie privilege of fight¬ 
ing in her behalf.” 

The French persisted in opening the war, 
while the good queen gradually failed in 
health. It is said: “As she approached death 
her faith and trust never faltered. She de¬ 
clared that she would die fully trusting in Je¬ 
sus Christ as her Saviour. She died July 13, 
1883, and the same day her niece was an¬ 
nounced Queen of Madagascar as Kanavalona 
III. She was a widow, twenty years of age, a 
graduate of the Friends’ Foreign Mission Asso¬ 
ciation School and of the Girls’ High School 
of the London Missionary Society, near the 
capital. She was well educated and a Christian. 

The war with the French went on, and it is 
declared that during the four years it con¬ 
tinued neither the people nor the army of the 
queen deteriorated. The families of the sol¬ 
diers were encamped with them, churches 
were organized among the Christian soldiers, 
each with its native pastor, who conducted re¬ 
ligious service twice every Sabbath and sev¬ 
eral times in the week. “The Sunday and 
day schools were kept up in all the camps, 
and the soldiers when called into action 
marched singing hymns.” How could such a 
people be conquered? 


MADAGASCAR. 


179 


Earnest prayers were offered in their great 
assemblies, and on one occasion a missionary, 
Mr. H. E. Clark, said: “I have seen a young 
man kneel down in his pulpit, with tears run¬ 
ning dowm his cheeks, and I have heard him 
pray that God would be pleased to take the 
French soldiers back again, safe and sound, to 
their wives and children in France.” These 
fervent prayers were answered, and deliver¬ 
ance came to this people. The French were 
“ compelled to give up the conflict, and with¬ 
draw on the best terms they could.” 


CHAPTEK XIII. 


SANDWICH ISLANDS. 

T HE history of mission work in the Hawaii, 
or Sandwich, Islands is one of peculiar 
interest, and shows that the Spirit of God had 
moved upon the hearts of these people and led 
them to “prepare the way of the Lord,” even 
before they had ever heard of the name of 
Christ. 

This group, or chain, of islands is situated 
in the North Pacific Ocean, midway between 
Western and Eastern civilization, two thou¬ 
sand miles west of San Francisco, and four 
thousand eight hundred miles from Hong 
Kong. They were discovered in 1778, by 
Capt. Cook, and named by him the Sand¬ 
wich Islands, though by the natives called Ha¬ 
waii, from the name of the largest island in 
the group. Capt. Cook was killed on Hawaii 
twenty years after his discovery, and a monu¬ 
ment has been erected there to his memory. 

The total area comprised on the eight prin¬ 
cipal islands of this chain of ten or twelve is 
(180) 


SANDWICH ISLANDS. 


181 


about 7,000 square miles. The largest, Hawaii, 
is remarkable for its four volcanic mountains. 
Mauna Loa, 13,600 feet high, is one of the 
largest active volcanoes in the world, the crater 
of which is nine miles in circumference, and 
contains an immense sea of burning lava. 
Mauna Kea, 13,805 feet in altitude, is the 
highest point on the Pacific Ocean, and is 
covered with perpetual snow, Many fertile 
tracts of land are on the mountain slopes and 
in the valleys. 

Honolulu is the capital of the kingdom, with 
a population of more than 20,000. It is situ¬ 
ated on the island Oahu, the third in size and 
more central, noted for its beautiful scenery, 
its fine harbor, and consequently for its com¬ 
mercial advantages. 

Another of this group, Molokai, is cele¬ 
brated as the famous leper settlement where 
Father Damiens lived and died to give the gos¬ 
pel to these isolated and wretched people. 

The climate on the Hawaiian Islands is so 
universally unchangeable that the natives 
have no w r ord in their language to express 
the changes of temperature—no word for 
weather. 

The natives are called Kanakas, and belong 
to the Malay race, “ modified by the Polyne- 


182 


MISSION STUDIES. 


sian type,” and “physically among the finest 
races in the Pacific, and have shown consider¬ 
able intellectual capacity.” 

At the time they were made known to the 
world by Capt. Cook they had no written 
language, but their spoken language could be 
understood by the New Zealanders. Seventy- 
five years ago the people were in the lowest 
state of barbarism; they had very little cloth¬ 
ing, no dwellings, no written language; a “ na¬ 
tion of drunkards,” with no laws and no courts 
of justice. Kings and chiefs owned the soil, 
and all others were slaves. Their superstition 
and ignorance were intense, their idolatry bar¬ 
barous, and human sacrifices were frequent. 

In the beginning of the present century a 
providential chain of circumstances prepared 
the way for the missionaries. A man of Ha¬ 
waii, of great “physical and mental energy,” 
with other excellent qualities, determined to 
subjugate all the islands and unite them un¬ 
der one government. He did so, and became 
King Kamehameha I. 

One of Capt. Cook’s officers, Vancouver by 
name, was the first person to tell this people 
of a better religion than idol worship, and 
in his three later visits, in 1792, 1793, and 
1794, to the islands they were led to renounce 


SANDWICH ISLANDS. 


183 


tlieir idols and destroy them. It is said: “ The 
reigning king was so far impressed by the in¬ 
structions of Vancouver that before his death, 
in May, 1819, he forbade the customary offer¬ 
ing of human sacrifices at his funeral; and his 
son and successor, Liholiho, went so far as to 
destroy all the idols of the islands, and de¬ 
molish their temples, so that on the coming of 
the first missionaries they witnessed the singu¬ 
lar phenomenon of a nation without a religion, 
and ready and willing to be instructed.” 

In 1809, about the time that the American 
people were beginning to plan for Christianiz¬ 
ing them, two native boys, named Opukahaia 
and Hopu, came to the United States in an 
American vessel and landed in New York. 
They went with the captain of the ship to 
New Haven, Conn., and very soon some of the 
students of Yale College began to give them 
instruction. Others followed them, and a mis¬ 
sion school was founded at Cornwall, Conn. 
These boys were converted to the Christian 
religion, and became anxious to carry the 
good news of the gospel to their heathen kin¬ 
dred and friends. The first died in 1818, Be¬ 
fore he could accomplish liis desire, but not 
until a widespread interest had been awak¬ 
ened in his behalf. 


184 


MISSION STUDIES. 


In the summer of 1819 two students in the 
Theological Seminary at Andover, Hiram 
Bingham and Asa Thurston, offered their 
services to the American Board, and in a short 
time sailed for the Hawaiian Islands, accom¬ 
panied by seventeen other men and their wives 
—teachers, physicians, farmers, and mechan¬ 
ics. These missionaries and their assistants 
arrived at Kailua, on the island of Hawaii, on 
the 4th of April, 1820. 

We have mentioned the condition in which 
they found the people, after their spontaneous 
movement to destroy all their idols. They were 
ready and willing to receive the gospel. These 
missionaries and their assistants were in¬ 
structed “ to aim at nothing short of covering 
those islands with fruitful fields and pleasant 
dwellings, and schools and churches; to teach 
the uses of civilized life,” but “above all to 
convert them from their idolatries, supersti¬ 
tions and vices, to the living God.” 

The missionaries were introduced to the 
king at Kailua, and they gave him the letters 
from the Secretary of the Board, requesting 
permission to remain on the island and teach 
the people. The king received them with 
great respect, and after a delay of several 
days permission was given them to stay one 



SANDWICH ISLANDS. 


185 


year. In a few weeks three stations were 
opened, and work was begun on three of the 
islands. Schools were opened, and the king, 
his chiefs, and members of his household were 
the first pupils. It is said: “ Within three 
months the king could read English, and in 
six months several of the chiefs could read 
and write.” They were not willing for the 
common people to be taught to read before 
they could do so. 

In November of the same year the mission¬ 
aries had ninety pupils of different ages and 
rank. Of course the difficulties to be over¬ 
come were great, but the missionaries were 
brave and untiring. Printing was introduced, 
and excited great interest. 

In 1821 the first house of worship was 
erected; in August, 1822, the first Christian 
marriage took place—Thomas Hopu, one of 
the boys who had first gone to America. In 
October, 1823, two chiefs, at their own request, 
were publicly married on the Sabbath day, in 
the church, as they said, “like the people of 
Jesus Christ joined together as man and 
wife.” 

The first Christian burial was that of the 
son of Mr. Bingham, January 19, 1823. The 
king and the chiefs attended, and a few days 


186 


MISSION STUDIES. 


thereafter a relative of the king, whom he 
called Sister, died at Honolulu, and she was 
also buried with Christian services. 

One month later, February, 1823, after a 
consultation had been held by the chiefs, a 
crier was sent around the city, and a law pro¬ 
claimed that the Christian’s Sabbath should 
be observed as a holy day, and one step toward 
Christianity was made. 

In November, 1823, the king, Liholiho, de¬ 
termined to visit England, and embarked with 
his favorite wife and other friends. They 
reached London in May, 1824, but in July 
both died. Before sailing he appointed his 
young brother his successor, and left the gov¬ 
ernment in the hands of his father’s widow, 
Kaahumanu. 

She was well fitted for the office of regent, 
in strength of character, intelligence, and 
great energy and decision of purpose. At first 
she stood aloof from the missionaries and 
looked upon them with contempt, but in less 
than one year a great change was observed in 
her life. She, with other persons of rank, 
made a public profession of her faith in Christ, 
and in December, 1825, became a member of 
a Church and a warm friend of the mission¬ 
aries. 


SANDWICH ISLANDS. 


187 


It is said that after her conversion she not 
only attended strictly to the affairs of the gov¬ 
ernment, but “ she began at once the work of 
visiting every island of the group, and almost 
every village of each island; encouraging 
schools, introducing improvements, and ex¬ 
horting the people to forsake their many vices 
and cleave to the pure religion which had been 
brought to their shores.” 

The earnestness which characterized all her 
efforts, and her own consistent example, caused 
a great change to take place among the peo¬ 
ple. In the course of six years eleven hun¬ 
dred schools had been established, and nearly 
58,000 pupils were in attendance, many of 
them being able to read and write, and a few 
had some knowledge of arithmetic. 

There was another woman of high rank and 
great influence cf whom honorable mention is 
made—Kapiolani. She made it her business 
to instruct the people and induce them to be¬ 
come Christians. It is said that “she became 
a pattern to the people in civilization.” “ She 
built a large frame house, inclosed a yard, and 
cultivated flowers, and in her dress and man¬ 
ners and mode of living appeared more like a 
Christian lady than any other high-born native 
of her day.” 


188 


MISSION STUDIES. 


She determined to destroy the last vestige 
of idolatry and superstition, and for this pur¬ 
pose visited the great crater of Kilaua, the 
jjeople beseeching her with tears not to ap¬ 
proach this dreadful place, the abode of all evil 
—Pele. Attended by one of the missionaries 
and some trembling natives, she descended into 
the crater five hundred feet below the top, and 
threw stones into the fiery gulf below her. 
Here prayer and praise were offered to the 
true God, and as the rocks did not open, nor 
the boiling lava destroy her, the people were 
convinced that “ Pele was powerless and Je¬ 
hovah was God.” 

Soon after this, Lord Byron, in command of 
an English frigate, reached Honolulu with the 
remains of king Liholilio and his queen, with 
the surviving natives who had gone with them 
to England. It is said that Christian services 
took the place of cruel pagan rites that had 
been the custom on such occasions; and in the 
evening, at the close of the religious services, 
a chief of high rank told his people what he 
had seen in Christian England. Lord Byron 
remained on the island two months, and gave 
his decided influence in favor of the mission¬ 
aries and the work they were doing. In June 
a council of the chiefs was held, where he as- 



SANDWICH ISLANDS.* 


189 


sisted by his advice, and Kaahumanu was con¬ 
firmed as regent for the young king, who was 
only nine years of age. This was considered 
a signal victory for the gospel over all oppo¬ 
nents, for, strange to say, the strongest oppo¬ 
sition came from foreigners residing on the 
island and from those who came in merchant 
vessels from America and England. The out¬ 
rages committed by the commanders and crews 
of these vessels from Christian lands, in try¬ 
ing to make the king and his chiefs repeal the 
laws made for the protection of their wives 
and daughters, were disgraceful to civilization 
as well as to Christianity. 

In 1829 the President of the United States, 
Andrew Jackson, sent a letter to the king con¬ 
gratulating him on the success he had achieved, 
and recommending his kind attention to the 
missionaries and his people to a careful study 
of the Christian’s Bible. This encouragement 
came when most needed to strengthen the 
hands of the chiefs in the administration of a 
good government. 

Outrages were committed by the French 
also in introducing papal missionaries. As 
late as 1850 the most unreasonable demands 
were made by the French for the introduction 
of “French spirits and Romanists;” but, it is 


190 


MISSION STUDIES. 


said, “in the kind providence of God—not by 
any previous arrangement, or direction from 
home—the United States ship ‘Vandalia,’ 
Capt. Gardiner, came into port at the most crit¬ 
ical point of the negotiation, and the impres¬ 
sion that this vessel would resist any acts of 
violence if appealed to by the government 
doubtless led the commissioner to moderate 
his demands, and the islands were saved, per¬ 
haps from such a protectorate as has been 
forced upon some other islands of the Pacific 
Ocean.” 

In the first ten years, notwithstanding the 
difficulties, the work accomplished by the 
American missionaries was most gratifying. 

In 1827 the prime minister died, mpurned 
by all, and on the 5th of June, 1882, the re¬ 
gent so beloved, “ Kaahumanu, also fell asleep, 
and the mission and the nation mourned as 
for a mother.” She appointed Kanau her suc¬ 
cessor, and though she was a consistent Chris¬ 
tian she had but little force of character; the 
young king had become dissipated, and was 
led by unprincipled foreigners to appoint an¬ 
other woman regent, whom they might control, 
and for a time great confusion and sad reverses 
to the Church followed. Finally, however, the 
king called a council, and appointed Kanau 



SANDWICH ISLANDS. 


191 


regent, and when asked by liis wicked advis¬ 
ers why he had done so, he significantly re¬ 
plied: “Very strong is the kingdom of God.” 

In 1831 a seminary for the education of 
teachers and other helpers in missionary work 
was opened in a shed made of poles and grass, 
but in the following year (1832) a good stone 
house was erected; the school continued to 
prosper, and in less than ten years the gov¬ 
ernment of the islands assumed the support 
of this seminary. 

In 1837 a seminary for girls was opened and 
a number of other high schools for boys and 
girls, and in 1840 parents were required by 
law to send their children to school, to assist 
in supporting the teachers and in the erection 
of school buildings. The Hawaiian Luminary 
was the first newspaper, and was published in 
1834, and in 1836 the Hawaiian Teacher was 
issued and had a circulation of 3,000. Several 
printing presses were kept busily at work, and 
in 1847 five periodicals were published. Bi¬ 
bles, hymn books, and many religious, scien¬ 
tific, and literary books were translated and 
printed, forming a very good library. 

Previous to this a great revival of religion 
had swept over the islands; thousands of peo¬ 
ple were converted and became members of 


192 


MISSION STUDIES. 


the Church. Knowledge increased, and “ the 
great work continued—a great work of the 
Spirit of God”—until in June, 1847, there 
were “nineteen churches and 18,451 mem¬ 
bers in good standing.” These Christians 
showed their faith by their works, and in 1851 
their contributions to the Church amounted 
to $21,211. 

One year later they formed a Hawaiian 
Missionary Society, and contributed to Mis¬ 
sions alone nearly $5,000, while to other ob¬ 
jects they gave nearly $20,000. What do our 
Methodist Christians think of this liberality 
out of such “deep poverty?” 

We see from these facts how rapidly the 
Hawaiian Islands became a Christian nation. 
The American Board completed arrangements 
for severing their connection with the Chris¬ 
tian work on the islands in May, 1858, and 
“the mission was merged in the Christian 
community of the islands.” “A new nation 
has been born into the family of Christian 
nations,” and since that time they have been 
sending missionaries to other islands of the 
sea, to show unto them “a more excellent 
way,” 



CHAPTER XIV. 


NEW ZEALAND. 


EW ZEALAND comprises several beau- 



JJN tiful islands, resembling Italy somewhat 
in form, and is situated in the Southern Pa¬ 
cific Ocean, about twelve hundred miles south 
of the continent of Australia, and eight thou¬ 
sand miles from our own Pacific shores at San 
Francisco. 

The group extends eleven hundred miles in 
length and seven hundred in breadth, with an 
area of about one hundred thousand miles. 
The scenery is rich and varied, some of the 
mountains in the northern island rising more 
than fourteen thousand feet above the level of 
the sea, and Mount Cook in the south to thir¬ 
teen thousand feet. There are lofty volcanoes 
also—Mount Tongariro, six thousand five 
hundred feet high, is occasionally active; oth¬ 
ers, extinct, are above the snow line. 

The Thames is the principal river, and there 
are many fine harbors, where whaling vessels 
land to obtain supplies. There are beautiful 


13 


(193) 


194 


MISSION STUDIES. 


lakes also, and fine forests that are not infested 
by wild beasts. 

The climate is said to be one of the finest in 
the world, but during six months of the year 
there are heavy gales of wind and rainstorms. 
The spring season begins in August, sum¬ 
mer in December, autumn in March, and win¬ 
ter in July. The soil is productive, and vege¬ 
tation rarely suspended, while most of the 
trees are evergreens. 

New Zealand is called the Greater Britain 
of the South. It was discovered first oy Tas¬ 
man in 1642, then visited by Captain Cook 
and surveyed in 1770. But no effort was made 
to Christianize the people until 1814. 

The natives are superior to other inhabitants 
of the Pacific islands, and are considered ca¬ 
pable of greater mental development. They 
are of Malay origin, and are called Maori. 

As a race of people they are tall and finely ' 
formed, in peace generous and hospitable, in 
time of war exceedingly fierce; they consid¬ 
ered it a point of military honor, as well as a 
gratification of personal revenge, to eat the 
slain bodies of their enemies. Cannibalism 
was for some reason forbidden to women and 
children. Each tribe had its own chief, and all 
the work was performed by women and slaves. 


NEW ZEALAND. 


195 


The only system of religion that prevailed 
when discovered was that common to all the 
islands of the Pacific—called Tabu , which was 
a kind of consecration that consisted more in 
prohibiting certain things on certain days, or 
some self-restraint imposed in regard to food 
or anything much beloved, than in any kind 
of worship. They were very ignorant and su¬ 
perstitious, but were not idolaters; they did 
not bow down to gods of wood and stone. 
This prohibitory law also answered all the 
purposes for government. 

They believed in a great spirit of good 
called Atua, and in a spirit of evil called Waira; 
they believed also in a future state, but their 
ideas were exceedingly vague and erroneous. 

In 1807 Kev. Samuel Marsden persuaded 
the Church Missionary Society in England to 
establish a mission in New Zealand. He was 
at that time chaplain of a penal settlement in 
Australia, and had an opportunity to become 
acquainted with the Maoris who came there 
on vessels. He was so pleased with them as 
a people that he determined to give them a 
knowledge of the gospel. There were many 
hindrances and delays, until seven years 
passed before he could carry out his purpose. 

In November, 1814, however, he was for- 


196 


MISSION STUDIES. 


tunate in purchasing a brig, and embarked 
with three lay missionaries—Kendal, Hall, 
and King, with their wives and children. He 
was accompanied also by a friend named 
Nicholas, and ten or twelve Maoris who had 
come under his Christian influence while at 
Sydney, the capital of Australia. One of 
these was a chief named Ruatara. After a 
preliminary visit had been made to discover 
if the way had opened for friendly inter¬ 
course, and the confidence of the people had 
been won, they went to a village where Rua- 
tara was known, and he made preparations 
for holding the first Christian service among 
these savage cannibals. He inclosed about 
half an acre of ground with a rough fence, 
then erected a reading desk and a pulpit in 
the center, over which he spread a black cloth, 
and arranged seats on either side of old canoes 
for the English, while the natives sat on the 
ground. 

This first Christian service was held on 
Christmas Day, in 1814. The Old Hundredth 
Psalm was sung, and Mr. Marsden preached 
from the text, “ Behold, I bring you glad ti¬ 
dings of great joy.” At the close of the ser¬ 
mon Ruatara told the natives in their own lan¬ 
guage all that the preacher had said to them. 



NEW ZEALAND. 


197 


Under the Church Missionary Society this 
work advanced through many changes until 
1841, when Bishop Selwyn was made Bishop 
of New Zealand. 

In 1822 the Wesleyan Methodists found 
their way into New Zealand, and began work 
in North Island with Bev. Samuel Lee as 
leader, and at another station Rev. N. Turner 
took charge of a mission one year later, but 
both were brought to a disastrous termina¬ 
tion, and four years later were forced to leave 
by a chief called the “Napoleon of New Zea¬ 
land.” The mission was reestablished the 
following year at Honkianga, with Revs. 
Messrs. Hobbs and Stack in charge. For sev¬ 
eral years the progress was slow, then the 
prospect brightened, and one Sabbath day in 
1834 eighty-one persons were baptized. 

Other missionaries arrived, new chapels 
were built, printing presses established, and 
thousands of books were printed in the Maori 
language, until in 1840 there were 1,300 Church 
members. 

In 1855 a Conference was formed in Aus¬ 
tralia, which took charge of the Methodist 
Churches in New Zealand. 

In 1841 the Reformed Presbyterian Church 
of Scotland sent out two missionaries: Messrs. 


198 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Duncan and Inglis. Rev. Mr. Blake also, it 
is said, “labored successfully in South Is¬ 
land, while Messrs. Honore and Wilson toiled 
in North Island amid many discouragements, 
but not without some measure of encourage¬ 
ment.” 

In 1889 Mr. Honore reported that “the 
moral and religious life of the Maoris in 
some parts of his district would compare fa¬ 
vorably with that of an equal number of Euro¬ 
peans.” 

The Baptists have not opened work among 
the natives, but the late Mr. Spurgeon suc¬ 
ceeded in having a missionary sent to labor in 
North Island. 

The Salvation Army has also lent its aid, 
and lias attracted the attention cf the natives, 
and at the present time all the people, Euro¬ 
pean and native, are within reach of the gos¬ 
pel. 

In 1874 the Wesleyan Methodist Church in 
New Zealand was formed into a Conference, 
and since then the membership has been more 
than doubled. 

There are six other organized agencies at 
work for Christ at the present time in New 
Zealand, and notwithstanding the money and 
life expended in opening the work at different 


NEW ZEALAND. 


199 


stations, the progress has been sure. A writer 
says: “The wonder is to see so many islands 
which a few years ago were the habitations of 
horrid cruelty, now enjoying the light and love 
of heaven. The results cannot be tabulated by 
pen and ink.” Another nation has been saved, 
a “ Brighter Britain ” brought into the inher¬ 
itance of our'Lord Christ. 

As we have already learned, missionary 
work in the islands of the sea presents some 
of the most remarkable and interesting facts 
that have ever been recorded, but it is not pos¬ 
sible to detail them in the narrow limits of 
these pages. Some correct knowledge is bet¬ 
ter than total ignorance of any subject, and by 
studying these islands in groups we may gain 
some valuable information. 

Among the South Sea islands prominent in 
missionary work are the groups known as the 
Georgian or Society, Austral, Hervey, Samo¬ 
an, Pearl, and Marquesas Islands, where mis¬ 
sions were established by the London Mission¬ 
ary Society; and the Friendly and Fiji Islands, 
occupied by the Wesleyan Missionary Society. 
They are situated in the Pacific Ocean south 
of the equator, and it is said: “It would be 
difficult for the strongest imagination to con¬ 
ceive an earthly paradise more lovely than is 


200 


MISSION STUDIES. 


to be found in some portions of the South Sea 
islands.” The same general characteristics 
of country, climate, and people are found as 
has been described in the Sandwich Islands 
that are just south of the Tropic of Cancer, 
and in New Zealand, though there are some 
peculiarities that belong to each cluster of 
islands. The Society Islands—sometimes 
called the Georgian—include thirteen islands 
in the group. The principal one is Tahiti, 
with an area of 412 miles, and was called Ota- 
heite by Captain Cook. The population of 
Tahiti is 11,200, and that of all the others 
about 13,600. 

These islands have been under the control 
of France since 1844, and others since 1880. 
The first effort to Christianize these people was 
made in 1796, when a ship- was purchased by 
the London Missionary Society, the “Duff,” 
and sent out under command of Capt. James 
Wilson, with twenty-nine missionaries. They 
arrived at Tahiti on the 4th of March, 1797, 
after a voyage of five months. They were re¬ 
ceived by the natives with every manifestation 
of wonder and delight, and the king presented 
them with a large house. After remaining for a 
short time, Capt. Wilson went on to the Friend¬ 
ly Islands, and ten missionaries were left there 


NEW ZEALAND. 


201 


to begin work, and one on the Marquesian Is¬ 
lands, when Capt. Wilson returned to Tahiti, 
and then to England. His voyage and begin¬ 
ning of missionary work were considered so 
successful that a day of public thanksgiving 
was observed by the Society in London. 

The year following, 1798, Capt. Robson was 
sent with a reenforcement of twenty-nine mis¬ 
sionaries, but before they reached their desti¬ 
nation they were captured by a French priva¬ 
teer, and after many sufferings and delays re¬ 
turned to England. 

In the year 1800 the first building for public 
worship was erected in Tahiti, and most of the 
material was furnished by the chiefs- One 
year later a reenforcement of eight missiona¬ 
ries arrived—in all there were about thirteen 
—and in the five years that followed some 
progress was made in teaching the people, 
though there were still many difficulties to 
encounter. A new chapel was dedicated in 
July, 1818, and nearly fifty natives discarded 
their idols, and became converted to the re¬ 
ligion of Christ, while many others attended 
public worship. One year later there were 
not less than three hundred regular hearers 
and two hundred pupils in the schools. So 
rapid was the progress of the people in the 


202 


MISSION STUDIES. 


knowledge of divine truth that in May, 1818, 
a Tahitian Missionary Society was organized 
at a meeting where several thousand per¬ 
sons were present. The mission had been re¬ 
enforced with seven missionaries and their 
wives the year previous, and new stations were 
opened. 

The king was the first person baptized, and 
this was done on the 6th of June, 1819, in the 
presence of four thousand or five thousand 
people. This must have been a joyful occa¬ 
sion to the two missionaries, Messrs. Bickness 
and Henry, who had been laboring among 
them for twenty-two years. 

At the request of the king a code of laws 
was framed for the king, and he called his 
people together to the anniversary of the mis¬ 
sionary society, and at the close of the meet¬ 
ing he read and explained the laws to the 
chiefs and the people, asking if they approved. 
They replied: “We heartily agree to them.” 

This was the beginning of better times for 
these people, and especially for the women, 
who now began to take their proper places in 
the family and in society. The Sabbath day 
was strictly observed, and all preparations for it 
were made on Saturday. Nineteen years after 
the natives had become Christians Rev. Mr. 


NEW ZEALAND. 


203 


Stewart visited these islands, and said: “A 
single glance around was sufficient to convince 
the most skeptical observer of the success and 
benefit of missions to the heathen.” 

Ten years later Capt. Harvey, master of a 
whaling vessel, visited Tahiti, and said: “This 
is the most civilized place I have been at in 
the South Seas. It is governed by a queen, 
daughter of old Pomare, a dignified young 
lady about twenty-five years of age. They have 
a good code of laws; no spirits whatever are 
allowed to be landed on the island, and there¬ 
fore the sailors have no chance of getting 
drunk, and are all orderly,,and work goes on 
property. It is one of the most gratifying 
sights the eye can witness, on a Sunday in 
their church, which holds about five thousand, 
to see the queen near the pulpit and all her 
subjects around her and seemingly in pure de¬ 
votion. I realty never felt such a conviction of 
the great benefit of missionary labors before. 
The attire of the women is as near the Eng¬ 
lish as they can copy.” 

It is said that when the French protectorate 
was established, in 1844, “the flood gates of in¬ 
iquity were opened;” Catholic priests and 
rumsellers finally broke up the mission. 

In the report of 1843 it is stated that the 


204 


MISSION STUDIES. 


“French and American Consuls had deter¬ 
mined to break through all restrictions, and in 
spite of law they had openly forced the sale 
of spirits.” The queen resisted these and the 
Catholic priests also, but was overcome and 
compelled to submit to the French protecto¬ 
rate. 

It is recorded that “ amid all these troubles 
the Tahitian churches received numerous ac¬ 
cessions, and exhibited progressive improve¬ 
ments in Christian character; . . . the 

queen maintained her Christian character 
throughout, in these most trying circum¬ 
stances.” 

The missionaries stationed at Tahiti brought 
other islands under Christian influences in 
1808, but no effort was made to enlarge the 
work by establishing missions there until in 
June, 1818, when Messrs. Davies, Williams, 
Orsmond, and Ellis landed at Huahine. They 
were accompanied by some native chiefs, and 
found that the people had already renounced 
idolatry, and some were waiting to receive the 
gospel. Of course they met with some oppo¬ 
sition, but the Christians triumphed. Schools 
were established, and a chapel erected, which 
was opened for divine service in 1820, when 
2,400 people assembled within its walls to hear 


NEW ZEALAND. 


205 


the gospel. The same general improvement 
was manifested in the people as has been de¬ 
scribed on the other islands in the adoption of 
the dress and habits of civilization. The mis¬ 
sionary work on these islands was subjected to 
various changes, but there was a steady ad¬ 
vancement. 

The following is a beautiful picture of these 
people, who had been so marvelously changed 
from degraded barbarians to gentle, civilized 
Christians: “On a Saturday afternoon parties 
from every direction were seen approaching 
the missionary station, either by sea or by 
land. The shore was lined with canoes, and 
the encampment of natives along the beach 
presented a scene of bustling activity. The 
food for the Sabbath was all prepared on Sat¬ 
urday and carefully placed in baskets. Their 
calabashes were filled with fresh water, their 
fruit was gathered, and bundles of the broad 
hibiscus leaf were collected to serve instead 
of plates. ' The dwellings of the natives ap¬ 
peared more than usually neat and clean, and 
at an early hour the preparations for the Sab¬ 
bath were completed. No visits were made 
on the Sabbath, and no company entertained; 
nor was any fire kindled except in case of sick¬ 
ness. . . . The devout attention which 


206 


MISSION STUDIES. 


these poor people paid to what was going for¬ 
ward, and the earnestness with which they 
listened to their teacher, would shame an Eng¬ 
lish congregation.” 

The awakening of the natives of the Socie¬ 
ty Islands to the truths of Christianity was 
followed by the introduction of the gospel 
into the group known as the Hervey Islands. 
It is said: “In 1821 two natives were set apart 
with appropriate religious services at the So¬ 
ciety Islands, and sent to Aitutaki.” 

Mr. Williams accompanied them, and related 
to the chief what had occurred on the other 
islands, and how the people had prospered un¬ 
der the influence of the true religion. Though 
extremely savage in their manners and cus¬ 
toms, the natives received the missionaries 
kindly. Only a few weeks after their arrival 
the daughter of the chief became dangerously 
ill, and despite all their entreaties of the gods, 
she died. This caused their faith in idols to 
falter, and by the end of the week many of 
the pecple renounced their idols and brought 
them to the feet of the missionaries to be 
burned. 

Fifteen months after the chief requested a 
general meeting of the people, and he ad¬ 
dressed the assembly, telling them how vain 


NEW ZEALAND. 


207 


liad been their labor and how fruitless the 
worship of idols. He proposed that all the 
temples devoted to idol worship on the island 
be destroyed, and that they should build a 
house for the worship of the true God. He 
“ exhorted them to let their strength, devoted¬ 
ness, and steadfastness in the service of the true 
God far exceed” what they had done for their 
false gods. “At the close of the meeting a gen¬ 
eral conflagration of the temples took place, 
and on the following morning not a single one 
remained. The whole population then came in 
procession, district after district, the chief and 
the priests leading the way, and the people 
following them, leaving their rejected idols, 
w T hich they had laid at the teacher’s feet, and 
receiving in return copies of the Gospel and 
elementary books.” 

In July, 1823, missionaries from other is¬ 
lands visited this place, where so much good 
had been accomplished. Many people crowd¬ 
ed in canoes around the vessel, “ saluting the 
missionaries with such expressions as these: 
‘Good is the Word of God;’ ‘It is now well 
with Aitutaki! ’ ” 

Mr. Williams and other missionaries de¬ 
termined to seek other islands, and give to 
them also the blessed gospel. Raratonga was 


208 


MISSION STUDIES. 


the last of this group they visited, and though 
there were difficulties to be overcome in win¬ 
ning the confidence of a strange and barba¬ 
rous people, their success was most astonish¬ 
ing. Temples were destroyed, idols burned, 
and Christian chapels built. In less than two 
years after the island of Karatonga was dis¬ 
covered the inhabitants had become a Chris¬ 
tian people. Mr. Williams said: “When I 
found them, in 1823, they were ignorant of 
the nature of Christian worship; and when I 
left them, in 1834, I am not aware that there 
was a house in the island where family prayer 
was not observed every morning and every 
evening.” At the present time the majority of 
the inhabitants are Christian, and they are 
training teachers and missionaries for other 
islands. 

The Samoan (or Navigator’s) Islands, four¬ 
teen in number, were also indebted to Mr. 
Williams for the introduction of the gcspel. 
He contrived and built a vessel, which he 
called the “Messenger of Peace,” and with 
some native teachers, after a voyage of two 
thousand miles, arrived at the islands on the 
24th of May, 1830. 

After explaining the object of their visit, 
and telling the people who crowded around 


NEW ZEALAND. 


209 


liow other islands had received the gospel, the 
chief addressed his people, saying: “Can the 
religion of these foreigners be anything but 
good? Let us look at them , and then at our¬ 
selves. Their heads are covered, while ours 
are exposed to the heat of the sun and the wet 
of the rain; their bodies are clothed all over 
with beautiful cloth, while we have nothing 
but a bandage of leaves around our waists; 
they have clothes upon their very feet, while 
ours are like the dog’s. Look at their axes, 
their scissors, and other property—how rich 
they are! ” This address was listened to with 
the deepest interest. 

Nearly two years later Mr. Williams paid a 
second visit to this group of islands, and as he 
approached the shore of one the natives crowd¬ 
ed about the vessel in canoes, and in one of 
them, it is said, a native stood up and shouted: 
“We are the sons of the Word! we are the 
sons of the Word! We are waiting for a re¬ 
ligious ship to bring us some < people, whom 
they call missionaries, to tell us about Jesus 
Christ.” 

To tell of Mr. Williams’s reception at all 
these different islands, to whom not a mission¬ 
ary had ever been sent, and the almost frantic 
desire of the people to receive teachers and 
14 


210 


MISSION STUDIES. 


“workers of religion,” would fill many pages, 
and stir the hearts of the hardest who “ do not 
believe in foreign missions.” In less than ten 
years the gospel had spread abroad, and at the 
present time there is scarcely a child more 
than seven years of age who cannot read and 
write. The Bible has been translated and 
printed, and mission work is still carried on 
by the London Missionary Society, with 175 
native helpers. 

The same success attended Mr. Williams’s 
visits to the Marquesas, Pearl, and Austral is¬ 
lands, and in each group the same remarkable 
changes were observed in the people; but the 
last voyage of this Apostle to the Pacific was 
made to Erromanga, one of the group of the 
New Hebrides, where he and Mr. Harris were 
murdered by the savage inhabitants. Since 
that time, however, the people have received 
the gospel. 

The Friendly (or Tonga) Islands, one hun¬ 
dred and fifty in number, were discovered in 
1643 by Tasman, and visited by Capt. Wil¬ 
son, of the “Duff,” in 1797. It is said: “Of 
late years Christianity has greatly extended 
itself in the Friendly Islands, notwithstanding 
the opposition of heathenism and popery.” 

The Fiji Islands are three hundred and 


NEW ZEALAND. 


211 


sixty miles northwest of the Friendly Is¬ 
lands, and are about one hundred and fifty 
in number. The inhabitants were savage 
cannibals, and when in 1835 Eev. William 
Cross and D. Cargill, from the Friendly 
Isles, first visited one of these islands, they 
found two hundred people on the beach, with 
muskets, clubs, spears, bows and arrows. The 
chief soon appeared, and they landed and ex¬ 
plained their mission, when land and houses 
were given them, and they soon began to 
preach the gospel to the natives, and many were 
converted. It was said by one writer: “But 
notwithstanding the darkness and impiety and 
sin and cannibalism in Fiji, a great work is be¬ 
ing effected in that country.” The printing 
press and the Bible have wrought marvelous 
changes. “Almost every year since the gospel 
obtained a foothold in these islands there have 
been reported, afc some of the stations, revivals 
when the whole community seemed moved by 
the special presence of the Holy Spirit. And 
in the wonderful events that have transpired 
in this mission has been literally fulfilled the 
prophetic declaration: ‘The isles shall wait 
for his law. 1 ” “ Fifty years ago there was not 

a native Christian on the Fiji Islands; now 
there is not a heathen.” 


CHAPTER XV. 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 

HE East Indian Archipelago includes a 



X vast range of islands in the Pacific Ocean, 
extending from Australia northward to China. 
It is said tradition reports it to be the visible 
remains of a sunk continent, and forms as it 
were a bridge between these far-distant coun¬ 
tries. Sumatra, Borneo, New Guinea, Celebes, 
and Java are the largest in this immense 
group of islands. All together “they comprise 
an area of 700,000 square miles, and contain 
about 24,000,000 of human beings, of all grades 
of color and stature.” 

Some of these people are the most degener¬ 
ate of the human family, while others possess 
characteristics that show they are kindred to 
almost every nation, including Europeans. 
The Chinese are very numerous in these is¬ 
lands, and have become so dominant as to 
have almost threatened the extinction of the 
Malays, who centuries ago emigrated from 
India. 


( 212 ) 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 213 

The same peculiarities belong to these is¬ 
lands as to others of which we have written: 
in climate, soil, and productiveness as well as 
in regard to the manners, customs, and gen¬ 
eral intelligence of the inhabitants. 

The adventurous Portuguese were the first 
Europeans to discover these larger islands, 
and form settlements for purposes of trade. 

Sumatra extends from northwest to south¬ 
east more than one thousand miles, containing 
an area of 160,000 square miles. Lofty moun¬ 
tains are near the western coast, and large 
rivers are on the eastern slope. It is said that 
“ sugar cane, coffee, rice, and spices are the 
principal products, though much fine timber 
and many tropical fruits are found in abun¬ 
dance.” The Malay race is predominant. 
The greater part of the island belongs to the 
Dutch. 

Palembang is one of the principal cities of 
Sumatra. “ It has 50,000 inhabitants, with 
barracks, hospitals, one of the finest mosques 
in the Dutch Indies, and a tomb said to be 
that of Alexander the Great.” 

In 1820 the English Baptists began a mis¬ 
sion in Sumatra, which did not long continue; 
then in 1833 the American Board sent out 
Messrs. Munson and Lyman, who after a time 


214 


MISSION STUDIES. 


pushed their way into the interior, and were 
cruelly murdered. 

Missions were established later on the 
coasts, and at the present time there are three 
societies at work in Sumatra. The .Rhenish 
Missionary Society, with headquarters at Bar¬ 
men, Germany, now has five stations; the Java 
Comite, of Holland, has two stations; and the 
British and Foreign Bible Society is sending 
out colporters in the seaports and along the 
coast, with translations of the Scriptures in 
Malay and some of the dialects. 

Borneo is one thousand miles in length and 
seven hundred and fifty in breadth. It is situ¬ 
ated directly on the equator, and the climate 
is remarkably healthy. The island is partly 
under British and partly under German rule. 
Missionary work is carried on by the Society 
for the Propagation of the Gcspei and by the 
Rhenish Missionary Society. 

In 1835 Messrs. Barnstein and Heyer were 
sent to Borneo, and it is said that when they 
went farther southwest among the Dyaks, and 
told this people of Christ, “they appeared 
like they had awakened from a long sleep, and 
continually heard the w T ord with joy.” In 
1836 three new missionaries arrived, and all 
rejoiced at their success. 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 215 

The first missionaries sent to Borneo by the 
American Board were Messrs. Elihu Doty, 
Elbert Nevius, and William Youngblood, with 
their wives and Miss Condit, a teacher. This 
was in 1839. Their work was conducted un¬ 
der many difficulties. 

The island of Java belongs to the Nether¬ 
lands, and is one of their richest possessions. 
It is said to be one of the most important is¬ 
lands in this Eastern Archipelago. The cli¬ 
mate is mild, the country beautiful in its nat¬ 
ural advantages, and the people industrious. It 
has an area of more than 52,000 square miles, 
intersper ed with mountains, fertile plains, 
rivers, and lakes. The population is very 
dense, numbering in 1887 nearly 22,000,000. 
More than 50,000 of these were Europeans, 
and more than 225,000 were Chinese. Moham¬ 
medanism is the prevailing religion,, even 
among the Europeans. 

There are several large cities on the is¬ 
land, with “numerous religious, educational, 
and commercial institutions.” 

Missionary work is carried on by the Neth- 
erland Missionary Society, the Dutch Bap¬ 
tist, and various other societies. The Lon¬ 
don Missionary Society sent missionaries 
to Java in 1813. In 1886 it is said there were 


216 


MISSION STUDIES. 


more than eleven thousand Christians in Java, 
and one year later in that part owned by the 
Netherlands there were sixty-seven missiona¬ 
ries. The New Testament had been translated 
into Javanese, and at that time a Mr. Dansz 
was translating the Old Testament. 

The island of Celebes is situated east of 
Borneo, and like that island is crossed by the 
equator. It is under control of the Dutch. 
The population is 836,304, and like most of 
these Pacific islanders they are Mohammedan 
in faith. Celebes was discovered by the Por¬ 
tuguese iu 1525; the Dutch took possession in 
1607, driving out the Portuguese in 1660. 
Missionary work is carried on by the Nether- 
land Missionary Society at ten different sta¬ 
tions. 

New Guinea (or Papua, as it is called) is said 
to be the largest island on the globe except 
Australia. It is about 1,300 miles in length, 
and is still to a great extent unexplored. Vege¬ 
tation, as in all tropical climes, is very luxuri¬ 
ant; fine timber in the northern or mountain¬ 
ous part, and in the cultivated portions rice, 
tobacco, and sugar cane are raised. The in¬ 
habitants belong to the negro race, though 
there are varieties of the Polynesian race 
among them. Papau is under the control of 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 217 

the Dutch Government, though in 1888 the 
southeastern part was proclaimed to be a pos¬ 
session of the Queen of England. 

Yery little has been done to develop the 
country or the people. Missionary work was 
begun there by the London Missionary Soci¬ 
ety in 1871, at Port Moresby, and at this time 
there are six missionaries in different stations. 
The Rhenish Society has one mission station, 
and the Utrecht Missionary Society is carry¬ 
ing on work at five stations. 

In a recent number of the Missionary Re¬ 
view we find the following statement of the 
present condition of missionary work in New 
Guinea: “Among the newer work commenced 
by the London Missionary Society is that in 
New Guinea. There are now 53 stations along 
the southeastern coast, a staff of 6 missiona¬ 
ries, over 30 South Sea Island feachers, and 
some 20 New Guineans. More than 2,000 
children are under instruction, and there are 
between 400 and 500 Church members. The 
whole New Testament in the Motu dialect has 
also been put through the press. Within the 
first year a new station on the Kwato Island 
has been occupied by 2 missionaries.” 

In hundreds of the smaller islands in this 
archipelago missionaries of different Churches 


MISSION STUDIES. 


218 

and societies are trying to show these be¬ 
nighted people a more excellent way, and 
yet there are still many millions of people 
who have not so much as heard the name of 
Christ. 

The islands of the West Indies are situated 
so near to our own shores it seems remarkable 
that the inhabitants were not drawn sooner 
within the circle of Christian influences, but 
missionary enterprise among early colonists 
was not vigorous enough to seek distant fields 
when there “ w^as so much to do at home.” 

Several large groups are included among the 
West Indies, and they extend in a curve from 
the western point of Cuba, about one hundred 
miles distant from the northeastern coast of 
Yucatan, in Mexico, to the northeastern coast 
of Venezuela, the most northern country of 
South America. It seems but a step from 
Florida to the Bahama Islands, of which there 
are nineteen; then to Cuba, Jamaica, Hayti 
or St. Domingo, San Juan, St. Thomas, Porto 
Bico, the Leev r ard and Windward islands of 
the Lesser Antilles, Barbadoes, Tobago, and 
Trinidad, just north of Venezuela. Euro¬ 
peans, Americans, Africans, Hindoos, and 
Chinese make up the motley population. The 
English, Danish, Dutch, Spanish, and French 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 


219 


have possession of these islands except Hayti, 
on which are established the two republics of 
St. Domingo and Hayti, the former founded 
in 1844, the latter in 1867. 

In these facts we find the reasons, perhaps, 
why Americans were not more forward in be¬ 
ginning missionary work. 

One writer says: “From the second visit of 
Columbus until within the present century 
these islands have been the scene of sorrow 
and oppression. In the years just subsequent 
to their discovery evil of the most pronounced 
character was the business of the men who in¬ 
vaded these shores, and all that selfish greed 
and fiendish cruelty could suggest was done 
to exterminate the mild aborigines. Hardly 
a trace of them is now to be found. Then the 
islands became the battlefields of the rival 
powers of Europe.” 

We have found very scant* early records of 
missionary work in Cuba by the Protestants, 
and as it had been taken possession of by the 
Spanish when discovered in 1492, we suppose 
the Roman Catholic Church had almost entire 
control. It is the largest island in the whole 
West Indies group, and one of the richest in 
natural resources. It has an area of 43,222 
square miles, and a varied scenery of moun- 


220 


MISSION STUDIES. 


tains, rivers, plains, and many fine harbors. 
The inhabitants are negroes, Chinese, and Eu¬ 
ropeans. Havana is the capital, a beautiful 
city of 198,271 population. The tomb of Co¬ 
lumbus is in the cathedral of Havana. The 
Jamaica Baptist Missionary Society carries 
on some work here and on other islands, with 
Havana as headquarters, and the Southern 
Baptists cf the United States are assisting the 
superintendent, Senor Diaz. At the present 
time they have seven stations in the islands, 
twenty missionaries, and 1,493 members. The 
American Bible Society also has an agent 
here. 

Porto Rico also belongs to the Spanish 
West Indies, and the Roman Catholic religion 
is prevalent, but there is one clergyman of the 
Church of England here, and one congrega¬ 
tion. 

The British West Indies include a far 
greater number of islands than any other 
government. Among them are the Bermu¬ 
das, Bahamas, Jamaica, the Leeward and 
Windward islands, Barbadoes, and many 
others noted in missionary annals. 

About the earliest record we have of mis¬ 
sionary work on these islands is that a Mr. 
Gilbert, of Antigua, who was residing in En- 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 


221 


gland for liis health, heard Mr. Wesley preach 
in his own house, and was converted. He re¬ 
turned to his native island in 1760, and began 
with great zeal and earnestness to teach Chris¬ 
tianity to the people. Nearly two hundred 
were brought to a knowledge of Christ by his 
instrumentality. After his death a Mr. John 
Baxter took up the work, and wrote to Mr, 
Wesley as follows: “The work that God be¬ 
gan by Mr. Gilbert is still remaining. The 
black people have been kept together by two 
black women, who have continued meeting 
and prayer with them.” The names of these 
two women were Mary Alley and Sophia 
Campbell. For twelve years Mr. Baxter la¬ 
bored with these people, carrying on his own 
work as a shipwright, sent there by the Eng¬ 
lish Government, and two thousand people 
united with him in a religious society, all 
blacks but ten. 

In 1786 Dr. Coke was on his w r ay to Nova 
Scotia, on missionary thoughts intent, when 
the vessel w T as wrecked and the voyagers were 
compelled to land at Antigua, where Mr. Bax¬ 
ter was so earnestly pleading for more help. 
We quote the following: 

About five o’clock on the morning of Christmas 
Day, 1786, when the lonely preacher was on his way 


222 


MISSION STUDIES. 


to the rude chapel he had built, he was met by a group 
of weather-beaten travelers who had just landed from 
a half-wrecked vessel in the harbor. The principal 
person in the group inquired for Mr. Baxter, and his 
eyes sparkled when lie found that he was speaking to 
the man himself, and understood where he was go¬ 
ing at that early hour. This “little clerical-looking 
gentleman” was Dr. Coke, and his companions were 
Messrs. Hammett, Warrener, and Clarke, three mis¬ 
sionaries with whom he had embarked at Gravesend 
for Nova Scotia just three months before, and who had 
been driven by the violence of the tempest to the West 
Indies. The whole party went at once to the chapel, 
where Dr. Coke preached with all his wonted zeal and 
fire to a large and attentive congregation, and his lov¬ 
ing heart overflowed with emotion as he gazed upon 
the upturned faces of a thousand negroes anxiously 
listening to the word of life. 

Dr. Coke remained six weeks, preaching 
twice a day, and made a tour among the other is¬ 
lands, preaching whenever he had an opportu¬ 
nity. His companions were left to continue the 
work—Mr. Clarke at St. Vincent’s, Mr. Ham¬ 
mett at St. Christopher’s, and Mr. Warrener at 
Antigua. It is said, “ From this time on the 
Wesleyan Mission in the West Indies was car¬ 
ried on with increasing success,” and yet they 
met with failures and many distresses. A 
most disastrous event occurred in 1826. A 
party of missionaries, thirteen in number, 
perished at sea as they were returning from a 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 


223 


district meeting held oo the island of St. 
Christopher’s. As their vessel approached 
Antigua it was thrown upon the rocks, and all 
were lost except one woman, a Mrs. Jones, 
who w*as saved. Beenforcements were re¬ 
ceived, and Dr. Coke again visited these is¬ 
lands, and the work spread from island to 
island. 

The Bahama Islands are near the coast of 
Florida. San Salvador is supposed to be the 
first island discovered by Columbus. Nassau 
is the cai3ital of New Providence. Of the 
nineteen islands comprising this group An¬ 
dros is the largest, ninety miles in length by 
forty in width; and Abaco, the most northerly, 
is about the same size. There are now about 
twenty clergymen of the Church of England 
in these islands. In 1861 each island was 
formed into a parish, and a bishop appointed. 

In 1825 the Wesleyan Methodists began 
work, and mission stations have been planted 
on five islands. 

The Baptists began work in the Bahama 
Islands in 1838, and at the present time the 
work is “ carried on in all of the nineteen is¬ 
lands, with 81 stations, 14 native assistants, 
and 4,320 members.” There is also one Pres¬ 
byterian church at Nassau* 


224 


MISSION STUDIES. 


The island of Jamaica is one of the most 
important belonging to the British West In¬ 
dies, and was secured to that government by 
the keen foresight of Oliver Cromwell. The 
area of Jamaica is about 4,200 square miles, 
with a population in 1881 of 580,804, of whom 
444,186 were blacks, Kingston is the capital 
city, with 40,000 inhabitants. 

From an early time the Church of England 
lias had many adherents among the owners of 
plantations. Calabar College, for the training 
of ministers and school-teachers, is the only 
part of the work now supported by the society 
in England. 

The Moravians, always in advance, were the 
first missionaries to open work for the natives. 
They began in 1754, and now have 20 mission 
stations, 27 missionaries, and 5,792 members. 

Dr. Coke visited Jamaica three times, and 
planted a mission there for the Wesleyan 
Methodists. The natives heard him preach 
gladly, and the work was extended on the 
coast in many important towns and far into 
the interior. They have at this time 20,700 
members. 

Soon after the Methodists had opened work 
in Jamaica the Baptist Missionary Society fol¬ 
lowed, and thirty years after the different Bap- 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 


225 


tist Churches united in one mission, and they 
now have 149 churches which are self-sup¬ 
porting, with a membership of 35,000. 

Different Presbyterian missions also con¬ 
solidated in 1847, under the United Presby¬ 
terian Church of Scotland, and have 60 stations 
and more than 9,000 members. 

Since 1870 the Episcopal Churches have 
been thrown on their own resources. Previous 
to that year the agents of the Colonial and 
Continental Church Society gave them assist¬ 
ance. They have now 30,000 communicants, 
95 churches, 52 chapels, and 242 day schools. 

Barbadoes is said to be a beautiful island, 
also belonging to the English crown since 
1645. It is east of the Windward Islands, 
and Bridgeport is the capital, with 25,000 
inhabitants. The Church of England has a 
membership here of 151,038, and a training 
college for clergymen under the control of the 
Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. 

A West Indian Conference has been formed 
for the Wesleyan Methodist Church, with 13,- 
000 members. 

The Moravians have 4 stations, 4 missiona¬ 
ries, and 7,000 members. 

The Windward and Leeward groups com¬ 
prise a great many islands southeast of Porto 

15 


226 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Rico, where missionary work lias been carried 
on in the former by Wesleyan Methodists and 
by the Society for the Propagation of the Gos¬ 
pel, the latter having 4 missionaries and 1,000 
members; while in the Leeward Islands the 
Church of England has 49,000 members, the 
Wesleyan Methodists 30,000 members; and 
the Moravians have 8 stations in Antigua, 4 
in St. Kitt’s, with nearly 5,000 members, and 
2,473 pupils in the day schools. 

Trinidad completes the list of islands that 
belong to the British Government. Tobago 
was annexed to Trinidad in 1889. 

The work of the Wesleyan Methodists is 
carried on in connection with the West Indian 
Conference. The Baptists, Moravians, United 
Presbyterians, and the Society for the Propa¬ 
gation of the Gospel all are doing good work 
in this most beautiful and fertile island, with 
many pupils in the schools and increasing 
members. 

In the islands belonging to the Dutch and 
Danish West Indies we find the satne charac¬ 
teristics as those mentioned that are under 
British control, and missionary work is car¬ 
ried on under the West Indian Conference. 

In the French West Indies, which include 
Guadeloupe and Martinique, no missions have 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 


227 


been established except by the Eoman Catho¬ 
lic Church, which has its representatives and 
thousands of communicants in all of the West 
Indies Islands. 

In the two independent republics of Santo 
Domingo and Hayti the Eoman Catholic re¬ 
ligion prevails, but all other denominations are 
permitted to erect churches and establish 
schools. The inhabitants are negroes and 
mulattoes, and the condition of the people is 
extremely low. 

The Protestant Episcopal Church of the 
United States has the most successful mis¬ 
sion in Hayti, where they have 382 communi¬ 
cants and about 300 pupils in day and Sunday 
schools. 

The Wesleyan Methodists and the Jamaica 
Baptist Missionary Society have a few stations 
in each of the republics, but their work has not 
been very successful. 

In some of the early numbers of these mis¬ 
sion studies we gave many interesting facts 
concerning the missionary work, when first 
begun by the Moravians in the island of St. 
Thomas, in 1732, under the direction of Count 
Zinzendorf. St. Croix also became one of 
their permanent stations in 1751. In these 
and other islands belonging to the Danes a 


223 


MISSION STUDIES. 


centenary jubilee was held in 1832, commem¬ 
orative of the establishment of missionary 
work; and in that one century, it is said, 
37,000 persons were baptized. 

In these brief pages we have been able to 
give only the most prominent points in the 
missionary work that has been accomplished 
on the largest and most important islands of 
the sea; to give all the details would be to fill 
many books. We hope this sketch will in¬ 
duce our readers to seek a wider and more 
extended knowledge of the subject. 

We have read with wonder of the marvelous 
things that have been wrought by the mission¬ 
aries among the barbarous inhabitants of the 
islands of the sea, but the greater wonder is 
that we Christians in the United States and 
all over the world have allowed millions of 
people to die without a knowledge of the gos¬ 
pel, without giving them even one earnest 
thought, or without taking from our “great 
abundance ” even one mite to give them a 
knowledge of Jesus Christ. 

A study of missionary work among the is¬ 
lands of the sea is scarcely complete without 
some mention of Australia, which may be 
called either the largest island or the smallest 
continent of the world. 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 


229 


In square miles this new continent—discov¬ 
ered by the Dutch, and named New Holland 
—is about one-sixth less than Europe, and is 
said to differ in some geographical features 
and in some of its productions from all other 
portions of the world. 

Writers are not agreed in tracing the origin 
and languages of the original inhabitants, but 
all found them to be wandering without cloth¬ 
ing and living in small huts of sticks and 
grass. They did not cultivate the land, but 
ate whatever land or sea afforded, and some¬ 
times, as an insult to their enemies, they 
would eat their dead bodies; or, what is more 
strange, as a mark of ..respect to their deceased 
friends, they would eat of their bodies as a part 
of the funeral ceremony. 

One writer remarks: “ The first question at 
the birth of a child was whether it should be 
permitted to live. If the mother already had 
a delicate child, or if it was found inconven¬ 
ient for her to have the care of an infant, the 
newborn babe was put to death or abandoned. 
Tender affection was, however, shown to chil¬ 
dren. . . . They had a positive religious 

belief in a Great Spirit, whose name was rare¬ 
ly uttered except on solemn occasions, and 
then with bated breath.” 


230 


MISSION STUDIES. 


The aborigines are of a distinct race from 
the inhabitants of other islands in the Indian 
Archipelago. They are a black people, but 
different from the negro, and though very low 
and degraded, they readily adopt European 
habits. 

Spears, clubs, and boomerangs are their 
chief weapons. 

When a man desires a wife, if he meets a 
“ damsel suited to his taste, he knocks her 
down with his waddy, and carries her off to 
his home.” 

The Dutch discovered the northern coasts 
of Australia in 1606, and other portions were 
discovered and visited by Dutch and Portu¬ 
guese vessels, in the years following until Capt. 
Cook discovered New South Wales, and Bota¬ 
ny Bay was so named by “ the botanist of the 
expedition from the wonderful floral display 
which its plains afforded.” This became the 
place where the British Government founded 
a penal settlement, and in 1788 more than 
eight hundred convicts, with guards and offi¬ 
cers, were sent to Botany Bay. The governor 
sent to control this colony lived at a place 
called Sydney, which afterwards became the 
capital city of Australia. 

For many years the condition of the people 


THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA. 


231 


was not improved by this large importation 
of criminals, and we may readily believe it 
was hardly possible when we learn that “rum 
had become the ordinary currency of the day.” 
Many emigrants had found their way to this 
country, where land was free, and where broken 
fortunes might be repaired by cultivating rich, 
unoccupied lands and by raising large flocks 
of sheep and herds of cattle. 

In 1809, after many changes, a new governor 
was found necessary, and Col. Macquarie was 
sent, “ whose system of government converted 
a settlement of reprobates into a God-fearing, 
law-abiding commonwealth.” He improved 
the condition not only of the convicts, but of 
all the citizens, and in 1814 he issued a procla¬ 
mation declaring he would establish schools, 
and assign portions of land to the people, that 
they might learn the arts of civilization and 
become a wiser and happier people. These 
schools lasted only a few years, and there was 
no special effort made to introduce Christian¬ 
ity, owing partly to the fact that white settle¬ 
ments were mainly for convicts, until the Lon¬ 
don Missionary Society established work there 
in 1825. 

Missionaries came to Sydney from other is¬ 
lands to escape perils to which they were sub- 


232 


MISSION STUDIES. 


jected, and seeing the need there also for the 
gospel, appeals were made, and Rev. L. E. 
Threlkeld was appointed to found a mission 
at Lake Macquarie. It is said: “After six 
years of failure the London Missionary So¬ 
ciety gave up the work, but the Colonial Gov¬ 
ernment continued it, and provided Mr. Threl¬ 
keld with the means to carry on the work.” He 
persevered under many difficulties, acquired 
the language, printed a spelling book, and 
translated parts of the Scriptures, but made 
little progress in instructing the natives. 

In 1832 Rev. W. Watson and J. C. Handt 
were sent to Wellington, two hundred and fif¬ 
ty miles west of Sydney, to establish another 
mission, where they encountered the same 
difficulties, and where vicious white men made 
all their efforts unavailing. 

Rev. J. Gunther took charge of the mis¬ 
sion in 1837, but in about four years it was 
given up. 

Rev. Dr. Lang went to New South Wales in 
1823 from the Church of Scotland, and in 
1840 and 1841 was instrumental in sending out 
seven missionaries, who began work at More- 
ton Bay and at Keppel Bay, and though they 
persevered for fifteen years, the results were 
so discouraging that the work was abandoned 


THE ISLANDS OE THE SEA. 


233 


Rev. William Ridley made another effort in 
1850. He translated grammars and parts of 
the gospel, but was compelled to give up the 
work, and afterwards preached at Sydney. 

In recent years Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Ma¬ 
thews have labored more successfully, and for 
fifteen years “have had the satisfaction of 
leading a goodly number to the Saviour.” Mr. 
and Mrs. Mathews visited England in 1889, 
and many Christian friends have aided them. 

To the Colony of Victoria the Moravian 
Church sent missionaries in 1850. “ Insuper¬ 

able difficulties,” however, caused them to give 
up the mission and return to Europe; but in 
1858 Mr. Spieseke and Rev. F. A. Hagenauer 
reopened the mission, and the latter con¬ 
tinued his work among them for thirty-two 
years. Lately “ he has been appointed Gen¬ 
eral Inspector and Secretary for the Aborigi¬ 
nes, so that the whole remnant of the people 
is now under his care.” 

Other missions have been established by 
the Moravians, the Church of England Com¬ 
mittee, and by the Presbyterians, and in the 
last twenty years “ converts have been won to 
Christ.” 

Rev. Mr. Hagenauer has traveled over many 
portions of the country, and helped to build 


234 


MISSION STUDIES. 


up many stations, and “ still urges tlie occu- 
IDancy of new stations.” He says: “Many 
souls have been brought to a knowledge of the 
truth, and all who take an interest in the work 
may rejoice and praise God that he has also 
given repentance unto life to the original in¬ 
habitants of our adopted beautiful country.” 

Time and space fail us to tell of the work 
done by the Presbyterian and Lutheran 
Churches in South Australia, also in West 
Australia and in Queensland. 

At the present time active missionary so¬ 
cieties and churches in Australia are sending 
the gospel out among the heathen in the Poly¬ 
nesian Islands, and to-day, quoting from a 
writer, “ it has pleased God to raise up an ac¬ 
tive and evangelical Church in the Australian 
Colonies, and he has put it into their hearts to 
assist in the evangelization of the world.” 


CHAPTEE XVI. 


AFRICA. 



^HE Continent of Africa is so well known in 


-L its geographical position that it is scarcely 
necessary to mention this and some other facts 
that can be easily ascertained by reference to 
any school atlas. 

It has been called the Dark Continent and 
the Lost Continent, and has been really lost 
to civilization, lost to Christianity, and almost 
lost to hope, until the explorations of Living¬ 
stone and Stanley, primarily instigated and 
inspired by the discoveries and missionary 
labors of Eobert Moffat, revealed the dark 
interior of this vast country to the world. 

One writer has remarked: “ To-day the 
dark and lost and hopeless continent, spoiled 
of its secrets, stands in the search light of the 
nineteenth century. The eyes of Europe and 
America are turned upon Africa, and the ma¬ 
jestic subject is up for debate in the parlia¬ 
ment of man.” 

We are indebted to the enterprising Portu- 


( 235 ) 


236 


MISSION STUDIES. 


guese of the fifteenth century for the first 
outlines of the coast of Africa, unless we ac¬ 
cept the facts stated by Herodotus, that Necho, 
King of Egypt, sent an expedition to circum¬ 
navigate the continent, and that this feat was 
really accomplished. To the Arabs and their 
patient camels, however, we are indebted for 
the meager information concerning the in¬ 
terior, which still, even since Stanley’s ex¬ 
plorations, continues to be “ a mystery to the 
white man, a land of darkness and terror to 
the most fearless and enterprising traveler.” 

The Phoenicians were probably the first 
to establish colonies, about three thousand 
years ago, in the northern part of Africa and 
along the coast of the Red Sea and the Med¬ 
iterranean, but it is not believed they had any 
knowledge of the vast interior or of the west¬ 
ern and southern portions of the continent. 

The name “Africa” is said to be derived from 
“Afrygah,” in the ancient Phoenician language, 
a word which meant “colony,” and refers to the 
time when this people founded a colony at Car¬ 
thage. Finally the whole continent took the 
name of this one colony. 

Arabic is the language now generally used 
in Egypt, but the languages of the whole 
country are as varied and as numerous as the 


AFRICA. 


237 


tribes who inhabit it, in a territory as large as 
that of North America and Europe combined. 

The condition of woman is more favorable 
in Egypt than in any other country that is not 
Christian, and the greatest respect is always 
shown to mothers, wives, and sisters. It is 
said: “The Egyptian has but one wife. She 
is associated with him in all his honors and 
sports, as well as in the management of the 
household. At every feast, and finally in the 
tomb, husband and wife share a single seat, 
and have their arms lovingly placed upon 
each other’s shoulders.” 

When speaking, of this ancient people, an¬ 
other writer has remarked: “ The Greeks were 
savages roaming at will when the Egyptians 
were settled in cities. The hills of the prom¬ 
ised land were dotted with stone huts when 
Memphis and Thebes had gathered the wealth 
of centuries into their noble palaces and tem¬ 
ples.” 

Egypt has long been known as the “ cradle 
of the arts and sciences,” and there it has 
rocked to sleep, under the shadow of the 
Great Pyramid of Ghizeh, every vestige of 
true philosophy, and has buried in its stone 
vaults every sign and symbol of the great 
truths with which the Egyptians are known 


238 


MISSION STUDIES. 


to have been familiar. Then in the seventh 
century, when all of Northern Africa was 
overrun by the Mohammedans, “with the 
Koran in one hand and a scimiter in the 
other,” nearly every sign of what had been a 
true religion vanished from the minds of the 
people, until the phrase “ Egyptian darkness ” 
has become a synonym for the densest igno¬ 
rance. For centuries these countries have been 
“trodden under the iron heel of Moslem and 
Turkish despotism.” 

No Protestant missionary work was at¬ 
tempted in Egypt, of which there is any 
record, until in 1819, when Rev. W. Jowett 
was sent there by the Church Missionary So¬ 
ciety, of England, to confer with the authori¬ 
ties of the ancient Coptic Church, that had 
preserved some portion of the true faith, in 
regard to the establishment of a mission in 
Egypt. As a result of this conference five 
other missionaries were sent by this society, 
and schools were opened in Cairo. In 1834 a 
chapel was erected, and though some good was 
done, this Egyptian mission was for many 
years considered a failure. 

The United Presbyterian Church of Ameri¬ 
ca also founded a mission in Egypt, and Rev. 
Thomas McCague and his wife were sent there 


AFRICA. 


239 


in 1864. Rev. James Barnett joined them the 
same year, and as he had been in Damascus 
for several years he was able to help them in 
the beginning of this most difficult work. 
From time to time they were reenforced by 
other missionaries, and in spite of many seri¬ 
ous troubles great good was accomplished. In 
1863 the first native church was organized, and 
to the present time the work has prospered. 
Academies, seminaries, and training schools 
have been built in many places, and in 1889 
there were more than six thousand pupil's at¬ 
tending the schools. Special instruction was 
given to women and girls, by a large number 
of unmarried women who have been sent by 
various Churches and societies to Egypt, and 
conspicuous among them have been the labors 
of Miss Whately, daughter of Archbishop 
Whately, of England. In 1860 she opened 
a school for girls in Cairo. Nine years 
after her friends enabled her to erect a spa¬ 
cious building, in which the number of her 
pupils increased to six hundred. Boys and 
girls were taught all kinds of business, and 
it is said her “boys are found all over the 
country, filling important positions in the rail¬ 
way and telegraph offices, mercantile houses, 
places under government, and in other posi- 


240 


MISSION STUDIES. 


tions of trust.” In 1879 a medical mission 
was established in connection with Miss 
Whately’s work, and with her own means she 
built a dispensary and a patients’ waiting 
room, where several thousand sick and suffer¬ 
ing poor have been treated gratuitously, while 
she read and expounded the Scriptures to 
such as were willing to listen. Miss Whate- 
ly died in Egypt in 1889, but her work will go 
on forever. 

Abyssinia is a mountainous country south¬ 
east of Egypt, and is remarkable for being 
“the only Christian nation in Africa,” and 
“ the only savage Christian race in the world.” 

We have noted in former pages that the 
Abyssinians were converted to Christianity 
near the beginning of the fourth century, 
when Athanasius was Bishop of Alexandria, 
and how two young men were cast ashore in 
a shipwreck, and became great favorites wdtli 
the king. One, Frumentius by name, was es¬ 
pecially influential in introducing Christianity 
among the people, building churches, and pre¬ 
paring men to preach the gospel of Christ. It 
is said that even to this day the Abyssinians 
sing his praises as one 

Who opened Ethiopia to the splendor of Christ’s light, 
When before that it was darkness and night. 


AFRICA. 


241 


Modern Protestant missions were estab¬ 
lished in Abyssinia by the Church Missionary 
Society in 1830, when Bishop Gobat and Mr. 
Kugler began a work there. After the death 
of Mr. Kugler, Mr. Isenberg and Mr. Krapf 
carried on the work until expelled from the 
country in 1838. 

Good seed had been planted that could not 
die. Two Abyssinian boys kept the faith alive 
for many years. Many disastrous changes and 
war after war occurred, and Abyssinia was 
closed to missionary effort until 1890. 

It is said: “ In the new Africa of the twen¬ 
tieth century Abyssinia is to play an important 
part. That it should be brought to a living 
faith in the gospel is a most pressing duty that 
rests upon the Christian Church.” 

It is called “ the Switzerland of Africa.” A 
late war with Italy made a great change in 
this ancient country, and it is once more open 
to mission enterprises. It holds a strategic 
position in the African question. Europeans 
thrive on its lofty table-lands, and it is the nat¬ 
ural port to Central Africa. 

A few more facts in regard to the work of 
Dr. Krapf will be interesting. It would be 
impossible to describe all the toils and labors 
he and his wife endured before leaving Abys- 
16 


242 


MISSION STUDIES. 


sinia and penetrating farther south. He 
traveled and labored incessantly to reach the 
heart of the people, and continued to study 
the different languages, translating rapidly 
portions of the Scriptures and distributing 
them among the people. He and his wife 
went to Zanzibar in 1844, and were received 
kindly by the Imam of Muscat, who wrote to 
different governors in his region as follows: 
“This note is in favor of Dr. Krapf, the Ger¬ 
man, a good man who desires to convert the 
world to God. Behave ye well toward him, 
and render him services everywhere.” 

About this time his wife died, and he was 
joined by Bev. J. Bebbman, at the new mis¬ 
sion established on the island of Mombasa; 
from thence, as a center for several years, their 
work was carried inland and other missions 
established, under what was called the East 
Africa Mission. 

This great and good man toiled unceasingly 
for Africa, returning home several times to 
gain recruits and increase the interest of 
Christians in England and in Germany; and 
finally at his home in Wurtemberg, where he 
was preparing dictionaries and translating the 
Scriptures into the East African tongues, he 
was found dead, on his knees, in the attitude 


AFRICA. 


243 


of prayer, in November, 1881, seventy-one 
years of age. The work so dear to his heart 
in Abyssinia is only waiting for more light 
to be brought to them by such resolute souls 
as his own. 

From northern and eastern missions in Af¬ 
rica we now turn to Morocco, in the northwest¬ 
ern corner—the Empire of the Moors, still 
calling themselves exiles from Castile, where, 
though so close to Spain, it is said to be “ a 
thousand years in the rear of civilization. 
Morocco, the land of song, renown, and classic 
beauty, has for ages been strangely neglected 
by the civilized world.” The same writer re¬ 
marks that the Jews “are the hope of the 
Barbary States, as they are now trying to ed¬ 
ucate the children of Morocco.” 

The principal missionary societies working 
in Morocco are the North Africa Mission and 
the South Morocco Mission. Both are now 
doing effective work. 

The North Africa Mission has a force of 
twenty women and seven men, who are en- 
gaged.at Tangier, Tetuan, Fez, and other points. 
This mission was reorganized in 1884, and 
since then good buildings have been erected, 
and the missionaries are gaining a strong in¬ 
fluence over the people. The headquarters of 


244 


MISSION STUDIES. 


the mission are in the city of Tangier, near the 
Straits of Gibraltar, and there the Tulloch 
Memorial Hospital is built in memory of Miss 
Tulloch, a beloved laborer. The hospital 
stands on the spot where she “fell asleep,” 
and is an invaluable institution, over which 
Dr. T. G. Churcher exercises a capable med¬ 
ical and spiritual superintendence. There are 
fourteen missionaries working for this society 
in Tangier, and among them is a Mr. H. N. 
Patrick, a Spaniard, who is preaching to about 
four thousand Spanish people in the city. 

It is said that lady missionaries are regarded 
with great curiosity, and are usually followed 
by the cry, “The Nazarenes are here, the 
Nazarenes have come!” by which they mean 
to reproach them as infidels. 

Fez'is the Moorish capital, and is one hun¬ 
dred and thirty miles from Tangier, with 150,- 
000 inhabitants. Miss Herdman was the first 
to begin work in that city, and still, “after 
seven years’ toil, remains a warmly esteemed 
messenger of peace.” 

It is said by a recent traveler in Morocco: 
“Not the least effect of the North Africa Mis¬ 
sion is the willingness of the Arabs to allow 
their wives and daughters to visit, unescorted, 
the mission gatherings.” 


AFRICA. 


245 


The South Morocco Mission was established 
in 1888. It was founded by a Mr. John An¬ 
derson, who was traveling in search of health, 
and was so appalled by the condition of the 
people in South Morocco that when he re¬ 
turned to Scotland he instituted and has since 
guided the mission there. Twenty missiona¬ 
ries are now at work at Rabatt, Mazagan, Mog- 
adore, and Morocco City; and though not 
connected with any branch of the Christian 
Church, the mission is growing into a wonder¬ 
ful agency for the salvation of these people. 
All the missionaries together have enrolled 
seventy workers, and opened six medical mis¬ 
sions; and though results have not been bril¬ 
liant, the missionaries have excelled in plant¬ 
ing gospel seeds among the Mohammedans of 
this land. 


CHAPTER XVII. 


AFRICA (CONTINUED). 

I N this review of missionary work in Africa 
we drop down across the great Sahara Des¬ 
ert southward from Morocco to the missions 
founded in the western part of this immense 
continent. 

West Africa comprises Senegambia and 
Guinea, the latter being divided into North 
and South Guinea, which extends as far south 
as Benguela. 

Four great rivers are the principal water 
ways of West Africa: the Senegal and Gam¬ 
bia, in Senegambia; the Niger in North, and 
the Congo in South Guinea. There are other 
smaller streams flowing into the Gulf of 
Guinea. The country is diversified also by 
long ranges of mountains extending far into 
the interior. 

The western coast of Africa has been sought 
for many years by adventurers seeking wealth, 
for its immense trade in gold, in ivory, and that 
most despicable of all—the slave traffic. 

The original inhabitants were found steeped 
(246) 


AFRICA. 


247 


in heathenism, though some fine traits of char¬ 
acter were discovered. There are traces of Ju¬ 
daism among them, and in their legends and 
traditions, also in their manners and customs, 
there are unmistakable evidences that in some 
former period they had a knowledge of the 
Scriptures. It is said: “They have traditions 
also of a deluge and of the advent of the Sav¬ 
iour, but coupled with much that is extrava¬ 
gant and gross.” It is also said that circum¬ 
cision is practiced among all the tribes in 
Western Africa except those on the grain 
coast. The practice of sprinkling the blood of 
animals on the doorposts of their houses, and 
the fact that in the house of the chief priest 
there is usually an altar tilth two horns —to 
which criminals may fly and lay hold of, as 
the Jews did of old—prove the truth of the 
suspicion that they once possessed some 
knowledge of the Bible. 

The country is divided politically into pos¬ 
sessions held by the English, French, Germans, 
and Portuguese, who have built up towns and 
introduced the habits of civilization. 

Senegambia is separated from Morocco on 
the north by the Desert of Sahara, and is an 
interesting section of country. 

North Guinea contains Sierra Leone, Libe- 


248 


MISSION STUDIES. 


ria, Asliantee, Dahomey, Togo, and other 
States; while the immediate coast region on 
the Atlantic Ocean is known as the Ivory 
Coast, the Gold Coast, and the Slave Coast, 
each famous for its own peculiar trade. South 
Guinea contains French possessions in the 
north—Congo and Lonango, with an outlet to 
the coast of the great Congo Free State. 

The first mission in West Africa of which 
we have any record was begun by the United 
Brethren (always first in missions) when they 
attempted to establish work at Christiansburg, 
on the Gold Coast, in 1736. They continued 
it for forty years, when, after eleven of their 
missionaries had fallen victims to the climate, 
the mission was abandoned as hopeless. Only 
in God’s sight the work was not in vain. 

The English Baptist Missionary Society 
then sent two missionaries to Sierra Leone in 
1795, but this enterprise was also abandoned. 

One year later (1796) three other societies 
united in the effort to found a mission among 
the Foulalis in Senegambia, who claim kin¬ 
dred with the white races, and it is said: 
“Many of them are very beautiful; they are 
intelligent, skillful, and brave, though mild, 
and have never taken part in the slave trade. 
They are mostly Mohammedans.” 


AFRICA. 


249 


This united effort of the Scottish , the Lon¬ 
don, and the Glasgow Missionary Societies also 
failed, chiefly because of dissensions among 
themselves; and, strange to say, they were only 
six in number, and far from' home and civili¬ 
zation. 

The venerable Dr. Coke, the world-renowned 
missionary, had joined a scheme, whether this 
or some other, to send out a band of mechan¬ 
ics, with a surgeon, to teach the arts of civ¬ 
ilized life, hoping thereby to prepare the 
way for future missionaries, but it is said: 
“ The enterprise came to naught, for its fun¬ 
damental principle was not that ordained by 
the great Head of the Church for establishing 
Christian missions among the heathen nations.” 

Dr.^Coke afterward acknowledged his mis¬ 
take, and the mission was sustained. 

More recently in Senegambia the English 
Wesleyans and French Protestant Churches 
have accomplished good for the oause of 
Christ, but progress has been slow. The diffi¬ 
culties and struggles of the pioneer missiona¬ 
ries were unusually severe in this northern 
part of West Africa. Schools were estab¬ 
lished in 1821, and all available means used, 
and though many persons lost their lives, great 
results were really accomplished. 


250 


MISSION STUDIES. 


One woman, Hannah Kilham by name, be¬ 
came celebrated for her philanthropic efforts 
to help these people. For ten years, with un¬ 
abating zeal, she worked and traveled, opening 
schools, and devoting especial attention to the 
languages and dialects of the country, that no 
means might be left untried for their conver¬ 
sion to Christ. This benevolent woman began 
her work there in 1823, and by her own efforts 
she educated two African youths in England, 
who afterwards became her zealous helpers in 
the schools at Birkow. She died in 1832. 

In 1823 Bev. Bichard Marshall and wife 
were sent to strengthen this mission, as the 
health of the missionaries, Morgan, Baker, and 
Hawkins, had all failed. Mr. Marshall died, 
and his wife, with her babe and African nurse, 
started home to England. She died on the 
way, and the motherless babe and nurse made 
such a strong appeal that other missionaries 
were sent to take their place. Bev. Mr. Fox 
labored among this people for ten years, and 
he was succeeded by Bev. Mr. Badger and 
wife, both devoting twenty years to this work. 

At the present time the French Protestants 
have w r ork in Senegal, and the English Meth¬ 
odists have stations in Gambia and on the is¬ 
lands of St. Mary and McCarthy. 


AFRICA. 


251 


Messrs. Murdoch and Patten offered to go, 
and though very little special information was 
obtained in the following years, it is known 
that “considerable good was accomplished.” 

In 1808 a native preacher, writing to Dr. 
Adam Clarke for aid, stated that there were 
about one hundred members in the church at 
Sierra Leone, which was very gratifying, 
though a sad decrease from the members that 
made the mission seem so prosperous a few 
years before. Other missionaries were sent 
there to reenforce the work begun by the Wes¬ 
leyan Society in 1796 in Sierra Leone. 

In 1811 Dr. Coke sent Lev. George Warren 
to reenforce the struggling mission, but after 
one year of faithful work and intense zeal he 
died at his post. 

William Davis and Samuel Brown then of¬ 
fered and were sent, and the work spread in 
every direction. Schools were established, and 
in a few years 3,600 children were receiving 
instruction. A missionary, writing of these 
changes, says: “In 1811 there was but one 
missionary, three local preachers, 110 mem¬ 
bers, and about 100 pupils in the schools, with 
two small chapels. Now (about 1838) there 
are 31 chapels, 7 missionaries, 107 local preach¬ 
ers, over 6,000 Church members, 3,608 scholars, 


252 


MISSION STUDIES. 


and more than 11,000 persons in the pastoral 
care of the missionaries.” According to this 
it may well be said, “What hath God 
wrought! ” 

Four or five other societies have had equal 
prosperity, and are continuing the work in 
Sierra Leone. 

The Church Missionary Society of England 
sent two missionaries to Western Africa in 1804, 
but one of them left the service, and the other, 
Mr. Benner, was stationed at Sierra Leone as 
chaplain. 

Two years later Messrs. Bretscher and 
Prasse arrived. The latter soon fell a victim 
to the climate, and again the mission was re¬ 
enforced by Messrs. Barnett and Wenzer, 
when Mr. Barnett died. Notwithstanding 
these discouragements, the mission prospered, 
and in 1810 Mr. Bretscher had thirty boys in 
a school, and Mrs. Benner was teaching twen¬ 
ty-eight girls, “ all neatly dressed in frocks and 
gowns made with their own hands.” 

New stations were opened at different places 
as rapidly as workers could be secured, and in 
1815 a church was erected at Canoffee. At 
Basliia also the mission was prospering until 
a slaver arrived, and everything was thrown 
into confusion. The church and schoolhouse at 


AFRICA. 


253 


Bashia were burned by the Mohammedan slav¬ 
ers, and the missionaries threatened with death. 
They escaped to Canoffee. 

Eariy in the same year the hearts of the 
suffering but patient missionaries were glad¬ 
dened by reenforcements; Bev. J. C. Sperr- 
hacker and wife, with four other helpers, ar¬ 
rived. Very soon, however, Mr. Sperrhacker 
died with yellow fever, and several others 
shared the same fate. In 1816 the Secretary 
of the Society, Kev. Edward Bickerstith, vis¬ 
ited the mission, and made some important 
changes in the management of the work; but 
soon after this the hostilities of the slave deal¬ 
ers were so violent that several stations were 
abandoned, and what was called the Christian 
Institution was founded to educate native boys 
for missionary helpers. Many children were 
rescued from slavery, and placed in this and 
other schools. This institute was afterwards 
removed to Regent’s Town, and then again to 
Eourah Bay. 

Mr. Johnson was stationed at Regent’s Town, 
and was agent of the English Government also, 
in distribution of food and clothing to thou¬ 
sands of natives, little better than brutes, who 
were rescued from slave ships. Though much 
discouraged at times, Mr. Johnson began to 


254 


MISSION STUDIES. 


see his efforts crowned with success. Young 
and old persons came to him to learn the way 
of life, and the people generally began to use 
the arts of civilization. In the course of one 
year an astonishing progress had been made. 
“All of the people were decently clothed, and 
most of the women had learned to make their 
own apparel. About four hundred couples 
were married. Their heathen customs were 
laid aside, and for a year before Mr. Johnson 
left for England, in 1818, not an oath had been 
heard nor a solitary case of drunkenness wit¬ 
nessed by him. The school had about five 
hundred scholars, and an equal number regu¬ 
larly attended church every day at morning 
and evening prayers, while the average at¬ 
tendance at public worship on the Sabbath 
was from 1,200 to 1,300.” 

The same writer continues: “At this time 
Regent’s Town contained nineteen streets 
made plain and level, with good roads round 
the town. A large stone church arose in the 
midst of the habitations; a government house, 
parsonage, hospital, sehoolhouses, storehouses, 
a bridge of several arches, and other dwellings, 
all of stone, were finished or in process of erec¬ 
tion. Gardens, fenced, were attached to every 
dwelling. All the land in the immediate 


AFRICA. 


255 


neighborhood was under cultivation, produc¬ 
ing an abundance of vegetables and fruits. 
About seventy-five of the natives had learned 
various trades.” 

Other stations were opened by this progress¬ 
ive society at Bathurst, Charlotte, and six or 
seven other villages, all presenting “the ap¬ 
pearance and regularity of a neatest village in 
England.” 

Sierra Leone became a great center for mis¬ 
sionary influence, where natives from many 
different tribes assembled. The efforts of the 
missionaries were directed chiefly to the edu¬ 
cation and training of the young people of 
these different nationalities, so that they could 
instruct their own people, and the gospel be 
carried abroad. 

One of these African youths has immortal¬ 
ized his name in the annals of missionary 
work in West Africa. His name was Adiji. 
He had been seized in 1819 by a Portuguese 
slaver, when a boy; was exchanged for a horse, 
then again sold for tobacco, and finally rescued 
by a British man-of-war, and taken to Sierra 
Leone, where he was educated by the mission¬ 
aries. When he had been there six years he 
was christened Samuel Crowther, and had won 
the entire confidence of all the missionaries. 


256 


MISSION STUDIES. 


He was bom in tlie Yoruba country. In 1829 
he married a native girl, who was educated in 
the same school. He afterwards went to En¬ 
gland and studied in the Church Missionary 
College. He translated the Bible into Yoruba 
language, and in 1864 was ordained by the 
Bishop of London as Bishop of the Niger Ter¬ 
ritory, and was sent back to Sierra Leone. He 
had before this accompanied two Niger expe¬ 
ditions, and had been much esteemed for his 
piety and intellectual power. When he re¬ 
turned to Sierra Leone he was sought by his 
mother and brother, from whom he had sepa¬ 
rated about twenty-five years, and it is said 
that his mother received the gospel from his 
lips with great joy. “ Born a savage, he died 
a bishop,” in London, on the 31st of Decem¬ 
ber, 1892, more than eighty years of age. He 
was a living proof of what Christianity may 
do for the savage African. 

Missionary work in West Africa was not by 
any means confined to the efforts of the Church 
Missionary Society of England. Indeed, it 
would fill many pages of many books to tell 
of all the efforts that have been made. 

We have already written of what was done 
by the Wesleyan Missionary Society. The 
English Baptist, American Baptist, American 


AFRICA. 


257 


Presbyterian, the American Board, the United 
Presbyterians of Scotland, American Episco¬ 
pal, and the Methodist Episcopal Church in 
the United States have all clasped hands for 
the salvation of Africa. 

Liberia has been the most noted and the most 
important State for missionary operations, and 
yet it has been one of constant change and 
disaster. 

In 1816 the American Colonization Society 
selected Liberia as a place where negroes from 
America might plant a colony, and teach the 
natives the blessings of Christianity and of 
civilization. The locality proved unsuitable, 
and the attempt was a failure, as the climate 
was fatal to nearly all who went there. Mora¬ 
via was then purchased from native princes, 
and other settlements and towns were founded, 
until in 1847 “Liberia was declared an inde¬ 
pendent government, with a President, Senate, 
and House of [Representatives, with Moravia as 
the capital.” 

The first missionaries sent by the American 
Baptists were two colored men, Rev. Lott Ca¬ 
rey and Rev. Collins Teague, who were or¬ 
dained in 1821, in Richmond, Va., and sailed 
as emigrants to Liberia under the Coloniza¬ 
tion Society. They were men of unusual in- 
17 


258 


MISSION STUDIES. 


telligence, and their work was successful until 
they were reenforced by others. 

The American Presbyterian Board began 
work in Liberia in 1832, and they were com¬ 
pelled to endure the same distresses, sickness, 
death, and all kinds of privations that had 
made the mission so difficult to others; but the 
same courageous zeal animated their hearts, 
and the work grew. 

Two years later the American Board sent 
Bev. John L. Wilson as their first missionary 
to Africa. 

The American Episcopal Church made an 
attempt to found missions in West Africa in 
1822, but failed until in 1834 Mr. and Mrs. 
Thompson went out as teachers, and opened 
schools. Three years later they had nine mis¬ 
sionaries and teachers, with seventy children 
in the schools. 

In 1832 the Rev. Melville B. Cox was sent 
as the first missionary to Africa by the Meth¬ 
odist Episcopal Church in the United States. 
He reached there in 1833, and at once organ¬ 
ized a church. He founded schools, built 
churches at different places, organized Sun¬ 
day schools, and held a camp meeting in 
March. In April he was taken sick, and on 
the 21st of July, six months after his arrival, 


( 


AFRICA. 


259 


he died. He said to a friend before leaving 
America: “If I die in Africa, you must come 
and write my epitaph.” 

“I will,” was the reply; “but what must I 
write? ” 

“Write,” replied Mr. Cox, “‘Let a thousand 
fall before Africa be given up.’ ” These words 
have been a stimulus to missionaries to all 
heathen countries, and not only a thousand, 
but several thousands, have fallen on Africa’s 
soil, and the beginning is scarcely made to 
save the people of this vast continent. Other 
missionaries followed, and the work goes on 
that was begun by Melville Cox. 

The Southern Baptists have had a most suc¬ 
cessful mission in Liberia. The missionaries 
sent by this Convention were all colored men. 

The American Missionary Association es¬ 
tablished a mission, south and southeast of 
Sierra Leone, and really began in 1839 with 
the capture of a slave vessel, at the time that 
John Quincy Adams was President of the 
United States. The captives were freed; they 
were trained in the knowledge of God in the 
United States, and with missionaries were sent 
to Sierra Leone, to go farther south to their 
own country, Sherbro. 


260 


MISSION STUDIES. 


The United Presbyterian Synod of Scotland 
entered this field in 1846. 

The Basle Missionary Society opened work 
on the Gold Coast in 1826, and since then 
the work has gone on and increased in every 
direction. 

In 1880 the rich and populous country of Me¬ 
dina was annexed to Liberia, and missionary 
work is still carried on by the Protestant Epis¬ 
copal Church and the Methodist Episcopal 
Church (North), besides some others less noted. 

Livingstone’s explorations prepared the way 
for those of Henry M. Stanley, who was sent 
in search of the great explorer. After find¬ 
ing him, Stanley went on still deeper into the 
unknown depths of Central Africa, follow¬ 
ing the Congo Elver from its source to its 
mouth on the western coast. Missions are 
therefore of recent origin in the Congo Free 
State. There are now ten different Protestant 
organizations at work in this region. 

The Livingstone Inland Mission was founded 
in February, 1878, by a society of that name, 
of which Mr. and Mrs. H. Grattan Guinness 
were the founders and managers. Mr. Henry 
Craven was the first missionary, and Eev. Al¬ 
fred Tilley, of the Baptist Church, and others 
were active helpers. The entire control of this 


AFRICA. 


261 


mission was placed in the hands of Mr. and 
Mrs. Guinness in 1880, and in 1884 there were 
seven stations, with twenty missionaries at 
work on the Upper and Lower Congo, with a 
steam launch named the “ Livingstone ” doing 
effective work as a “ missionary ship.” In 1890 
there were nine stations, thirty-nine missiona¬ 
ries, and four hundred members, with thirteen 
assistants. 

The English Baptists also founded a mission 
there in 1878; now they have eight stations. 

The Swedish Missionary Society, originally 
connected with the Livingstone Mission, es¬ 
tablished independent work in 1884 on the 
Lower Congo, and now there are three sta¬ 
tions and twenty missionaries. 

Bishop Taylor’s Mission, of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church (North), was founded in 1886 
“ on the principle of self-support and coloniza¬ 
tion.” It is said that there were about “ twen¬ 
ty-four missionaries under the Bishop’s own 
leading.” They have now seven stations, and 
in the last year sixty people have embraced 
Christianity. They took a steamer from Amer¬ 
ica that might be taken apart and carried from 
place to place, but it was of no use until 1890, 
when it was launched on the Lower Congo. 

In 1884 the Missionary Evangelical Alliance 


262 


MISSION STUDIES. 


began work on the same principle of self-sup¬ 
port, but with the same result. 

Arnot’s Mission was established by Mr. Ar- 
not in 1888, in the southeastern part of the 
Free State, and, though hopeful of success, as 
yet the results are not manifest. 

The London Missionary Society founded 
two stations in 1877. The field is difficult, but 
hopeful. 

In 1889 Mr. and Mrs. Guinness founded an in¬ 
terdenominational mission in the Balolo coun¬ 
try, where there were about 10,000,000 natives 
who knew nothing of the gospel. They have 
two missionary steamers called the “Henry 
Reed” and the “Pioneer.” In 1890 this mis¬ 
sion had four stations and fourteen missiona¬ 
ries. 

One other mission to this Congo country 
originated in the State of Kansas, United 
States, and was begun in 1891 by Mr. and Mrs. 
Guinness, when traveling through this country. 
Mr. Graham Brooke is connected with it, and 
the mission was to be under the control of the 
English Church Missionary Society, and to be 
supported by voluntary offerings. The mis¬ 
sionaries have no stated sum for their support, 
and have adopted the Mohammedan dress. 

Recently the Southern Presbyterian Church 


AFRICA. 


263 


has established a mission on the Congo, and 
Rev. Mr. Lapsley, of Alabama, was the first 
missionary. 

Mrs. J. T. Gracey tells, in the supplement 
to Heathen Woman's Friend , the following in¬ 
cident, written home by Mr. Lapsley just be¬ 
fore he died, about a Congo woman. He said: 

I asked her about her knowledge of God. She an¬ 
swered me right along, and said: “ The Bakete know 
God made and preserves us and everything, and gives 
us all things.” 

“Yet,” I said, “you do not clap your hands softly 
three times—so—and say, ‘Wolah? as you do if I give 
you only a little salt.” 

“ The Bakete would sing to him if they only knew 
him,” said she. 

Then I explained to several of them who Jesus wa«. 
and they listened very earnestly; but the complaint 
was: “ We haven’t heard this. You white people know 
about it, but we do not.” 

From the center of the Dark Continent comes 
this sad refrain from the heart of a woman on 
hearing for the first time the story of redeem¬ 
ing love: “We would sing if we only knew him.” 

These missions are all in full sympathy with 
each other, and as the country opens more and 
more the laborers are pressing in, but the 
Churches in Christian lands are not yet fully 
awake to their opportunities nor to their duty 
to Darkest Africa. 


CHAPTER XVIII. 


AFRICA (CONTINUED). 


''HE vast region in Africa lying south of 



JL the equator has been a most inviting field 
for missionary operations, though the interior 
has been so inaccessible that very little has 
been done except on the coasts and in the ex¬ 
treme south. 

The Congo Free State occupies the north 
central part of South Africa, recently opened 
to Missions, as already stated. West of this is 
the southern extension of Guinea, and Zanzi¬ 
bar lies on the east. Then, coming south¬ 
ward, on the eastern coast is Mozambique and 
Casa Land, belonging to the Portuguese; the 
South African Republic, under the French; 
south of which is the Orange Free State. Da- 
mara Land and Great Nam aqua Land, on the 
western coast, belong to Germany; while Zulu 
Land, Basuto Land, and Caffraria touch Cape 
Colony, forming the southern point of Afri¬ 
ca, all of which belong to the English, ex¬ 
tending north in the central portion of the 
country, through Bechuana, Matabele, and 


( 264 ) 


AFRICA. 


265 


the country bordering on Lake Nyassa, and 
to the southern point of Lake Tanganyika, 
east of Congo. 

When the Cape of Good Hope was discov¬ 
ered by Diaz, a Portuguese navigator, in 
1486, all of this southern country was inhab¬ 
ited by various tribes of Hottentots, a most 
degraded and peculiar people. 

In 1600, about one hundred and fourteen 
years after the discovery of this country, with 
its vast areas of unknown and unoccupied ter¬ 
ritory, and its “exceedingly fine and salubri¬ 
ous climate,” the Dutch began to settle there. 
Twenty years later two English commanders 
took possession in the name of the British 
crown, but no settlement was made. In 1650 
a colony of two hundred men and women 
were sent to the Cape by the Dutch Govern¬ 
ment, and it is said by some authorities that 
it was made a penal settlement. Two years 
later “the Dutch East India Company took 
possession and appointed John Biebeek gov¬ 
ernor, with intructions to extend Christianity 
among the natives.” After the revocation of 
the Edict of Nantes, colonies of French Prot¬ 
estants emigrated about the year 1700, and 
settled in what is called the Pearl District. 

The government of Cape Colony passed 


266 


MISSION STUDIES. 


through many changes, the conflict being 
between the Dutch and English until 1815, 
when it was ceded to the English. 

The^e details are necessary in order to show 
the condition of the country when the first 
missionary was sent there. 

It is not surprising to learn that the United 
Brethren of Germany were the first to under¬ 
take this mission to the Hottentots of South 
Africa. In 1736 George Schmitt was sent as 
the first missionary. He was kindred in spir¬ 
it to the noted Hans Egede, who was sent by 
the same Church as a pioneer missionary to 
Greenland just seven years before. Mr. 
Schmitt arrived at Cape Town, the capital of 
the colony, in 1737, and proceeded farther in¬ 
land about one hundred and thirty miles, and 
began work at Bavian's Kloof\ or “Glen of 
Baboons.” The name was changed after Chris¬ 
tianity was introduced to Genadendcil, the “ Yale 
of Grace.” 

Mr. Bobert Moffat, who was for twenty- 
three years a devoted missionary to South 
Africa, says of this “lonely missionary:” 
“Though he could only address the Hotten¬ 
tots through an interpreter, his early efforts 
were crowned with success, and the attend¬ 
ance at the first Hottentot school ever found-. 


AFRICA. 


267 


ed rapidly increased. With all tlieir reputed 
ignorance and apathy, they justly regarded 
him with sentiments of unfeigned love and 
admiration; and so evidently was the gospel 
made the power of God that in the course of a 
few years he was able to add a number of con¬ 
verts to the Church.” 

Unfortunately for this poor people, he was 
not allowed to continue his labors among them. 
He was compelled in 1743, by the unjust in¬ 
terference of the Colonial Government, under 
control of the Dutch, to go to Europe, hoping 
to return with the obstacles to his work re¬ 
moved. The Dutch East India Company, 
acting on the principle that if the Hottentots 
became enlightened it would be “injurious to 
the interests of the colony,” would not allow 
Mr. Schmitt to return to Cape Colony, but his 
six years’ work was not lost. 

It was fifty-six years before missionary 
work was resumed in South Africa; and 
when, in 1792, Messrs. Mars veldt, Schwinn, 
and Kuchnel arrived at the Cape of Good 
Hope they went in search of the place where 
Schmitt had preached and the people who had 
listened with such affectionate reverence to 
the truths he had taught them. They found 
the ruins of his house and the pear trees he 


268 


MISSION STUDIES. 


liad planted, though but few persons who re¬ 
membered his presence among them as a 
teacher. Mr. Moffat tells of one woman, sev¬ 
enty years of age, whom he had baptized, by 
the name of Magdalena, and who remembered 
him with pleasure. She brought to their 
view, as a precious relic, an old and well-worn 
New Testament that he had given her, and, 
“though bent with age and feebleness, she 
expressed great joy on being informed that 
Marsveldt and his companions were the breth¬ 
ren of her old and beloved pastor.” She and 
others who remembered him were delighted 
to hear the gospel again, and in the following 
year seven persons were baptized, notwith¬ 
standing the persecutions of the colonists. 
It is said: “Through all these trials, however, 
the native converts stood by their teachers in 
the greatest extremities.” 

The British Government took possession 
of Cape Colony in 1795, and after that peace 
was restored and the missionaries were al¬ 
lowed to proceed with their work without mo¬ 
lestation. A church was built, and in that 
same year “twenty adult converts were bap¬ 
tized, and the word of God was owned and 
blessed to the conversion of souls.” 

About this time the mission was visited by 


AFRICA. 


269 


a Mr. Borrow, who said: “Early on Sunday 
morning I was awakened by some of the fin¬ 
est voices I had ever heard, and looking out 
I saw a group of Hottentot 'women, neatly 
dressed in calico, sitting on the ground and 
chanting their morning hymn. . . . They 

have upward of six hundred Hottentots, and 
their numbers are daily increasing. 

Their houses and gardens are neat and com¬ 
fortable, and all are engaged in useful trades 
or occupations. . . . On Sunday they 

all regularly attend public worship, and it is- 
astonishing how neat and clean they appear 
at church. Their deportment was truly de¬ 
vout. . . . The women sang in a plain¬ 

tive and effective style, and their voices were 
sweet and harmonious.” 

The settlement of Gracevale continued to 
improve under Christian influence, and in 
1798 reenforcements to the mission arrived. 
A new church was built and eighty-four per¬ 
sons brought into the Church that year. Two 
years later a dreadful epidemic fever almost 
destroyed the settlement, but it gave the na¬ 
tive Christians an opportunity to manifest the 
sincerity of their profession. 

In 1808 Messrs. Schmitt and other mis¬ 
sionaries removed to another point, and their 


270 


MISSION STUDIES. 


efforts were signally blessed in the conversion 
of souls. The mission continued to prosper, 
and other missionaries joined them to open 
work in new places; work spread among the 
Kaffirs and other tribes; schools were estab¬ 
lished; and in 1837 an institution for training 
Hottentot assistants was opened in Genaden- 
dal with eleven boarding pupils. It is said: 
“The first examination proved highly satis¬ 
factory, and those present were not a little 
astonished to hear several of the pupils ex¬ 
plain everything with fluency in English, 
when called on to solve various problems 
with the use of the globe.” 

AVhile the Moravians were extending their 
missions they had many difficulties to over¬ 
come, but the results of their work were con¬ 
stantly encouraging. 

At the same time other societies were awak¬ 
ened to the necessities of Africa. In 1794 
the London Missionary Society sent four men 
to South Africa. Dr. Yanderkemp and Mr. 
Edmonds went to a part of the colony border¬ 
ing on Caffraria, and Mr. Kichener and Mr. 
Kramer went farther north to work among 
the Bushmen on the Zak Biver. Mr. Ed¬ 
monds did not remain long with Mr. Yander¬ 
kemp, from an “insurmountable aversion to 


AFRICA. 271 

the people,” but went to the East Indies to 
work among the Hindoos. 

Mr. Moffat, in speaking of the character of 
Mr. Vanderkemp, says: “He was a man of 
exalted genius and learning; he had mingled 
with courtiers; he had been an inmate of the 
universities of Leyden and Edinburgh; he was 
not only a profound student in ancient lan¬ 
guages, but in all the modern European 
tongues, and had distinguished himself also in 
the military art.” Yet this man, constrained 
by the love of Christ, laid aside all his honors 
to serve the savage Hottentots. He was reen¬ 
forced by Mr. Bead and other missionaries, 
and the work progressed until he died in 1811. 
He had been the first public defender of the 
Hottentots, and was the cause of their eman¬ 
cipation from slavery to the Dutch. As the 
years passed by new missionaries opened new 
Stations, until in 1818 Mr. Moffat arrived, and 
the work received a fresh impetus. His la¬ 
bors were steady and abundant. 

In 1848 the Secretary of the London Mis¬ 
sionary Society visited South Africa and 
“gave a highly encouraging account of the 
mission.” 

The Wesleyan Missionary Society sent 
John McKenny, of Ireland, as its first mis- 


272 


MISSION STUDIES. 


sionary to Cape Colony in 1812, but lie was 
afterwards ordered to Ceylon to join Dr. 
Coke’s band. 

Then, in 1815, Barnabas Shaw, “a name 
which will be remembered in connection wdth 
South Africa, offered himself for the mission 
field.” The Colonial Government still op¬ 
posed every effort to evangelize the Hot¬ 
tentots, and it was long before he was al¬ 
lowed to preach to them. His wife was an 
invalid, and his only hope was to go out from 
the civilized people into the “regions be¬ 
yond,” and yet, not knowing whether his 
home committee would approve ‘his course 
and meet the expense of a long and perilous 
journey, he was so much encouraged by his 
wife’s proposal to pay this from her own per¬ 
sonal funds that he decided to go. They 
bought a wagon and oxen and set out into the 
African wilderness. 

It is said that on the evening of the twenty- 
seventh day they met a party of Hottentots, 
accompanied by a chief, who encamped near 
them. Mr. Shaw entered into conversation 
with them, and to his surprise and delight 
the chief informed him that, having heard of 
the “ Great Word,” he was on his way to Cape 
Town to seek a missionary to teach him and 


AFRICA. 


273 


liis people the way of salvation. They had 
already traveled two hundred miles, and there 
were yet three hundred more before they 
could reach Cape Town. It was certain that 
they could obtain no missionary there, and 
that a peculiar providence arranged this 
meeting. Had either party started but half 
an hour earlier on their journey, they must 
have missed each other, they coming from 
Little Namaqua Land, and Mr. Shaw facing 
toward Great Namaqua Land. 

The delight of this poor heathen chief may 
be imagined when, after listening to his affec¬ 
tionate statement, Mr. Shaw informed him 
that he was a missionary of the cross, looking 
for a people to whom he might preach Jesus 
Christ; and when he agreed to go back with 
him to his tribe the chief wept aloud and 
“rejoiced as one that had found great spoil.” 
They pursued their way through deep forests 
and across the most rugged and precipitous 
mountains (over which fourteen oxen could 
hardly draw the wagon), and when within 
two or three days’ travel of their destination 
the chief hurried on to inform his people of 
his success. 

On the last day of the journey, between 
twenty and thirty Namaquas, mounted on 
18 


274 


MISSION STUDIES. 


young oxen, came hurrying on to meet and 
welcome the missionaries. They approached 
at full gallop, their eyes sparkling with de¬ 
light, and, having saluted them, set off again 
at the top of their speed to announce their 
approach, when the whole town turned out to 
meet them. Next day a council was held, 
which was opened with prayer, and a sermon 
from, “ This is a faithful saying, and worthy 
of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came 
into the world to save sinners,” and before 
the end of the discourse the chief and many 
of his people wept aloud. 

Mr. Scliemlen, a devoted German mission¬ 
ary, and some native Namaquas had accom¬ 
panied Mr. Shaw and his family, and when 
the arrangements had been completed for es¬ 
tablishing the mission he returned to his own 
'work, distant four weeks’ journey. 

Mr. and Mrs. Shaw began at once to build 
a house and prepare the ground for cultiva¬ 
tion, working in the daytime and at night 
teaching the people. This mission was named 
Lily Fountain, and it is wonderful how read¬ 
ily these ignorant and barbarous people re¬ 
ceived the gospel. 

In 1818 Eev. E. Edwards joined Mr. Shaw, 
and it is said: “His coming w T as most oppor- 


AFRICA. 


275 


tune and greatly delighted the people. In 
gratitude for his arrival the natives cheered 
them with ‘songs in the night.’ ... In 
the calm stillness of the night the missionaries 
are startled from their slumbers by the sound 
of distant music. They rise and listen, and 
as it comes nearer they discover it to be a 
happy band of redeemed heathen, going from 
hut to hut, and the song that rose on the mid¬ 
night air was a new song —a hymn of praise, 
in their own language, to their Redeemer. 
. . . As they went on they called on the 

head of each family to engage in prayer, and 
thus left in their track the cloud of incense 
rising up from the domestic altar, acceptable 
to God.” 

Schools were established, a chapel erected, 
and the news of the good work spread from 
tribe to tribe, until the cry came from places 
before distant: “Come and help us.” 

While Mr. Shaw labored among the miser¬ 
able Hottentots in Namaqua Land for the 
Wesleyan Missionary Society, the news of the 
good work that he was accomplishing spread 
far and near, and many began to wonder and 
to long for the blessed gospel that had 
wrought such gracious changes in the lives 
and habits of the people. 


276 


MISSION STUDIES. 


In February, 1819, tlie station was visited 
by an old Hottentot, who said: “I am an old 
man, and have long thought of the world; I 
now desire to forget the world, and seek some¬ 
thing for my soul. My errand in coming 
here now is to request that you will come and 
teach us at our place the good tidings of the 
gospel. ... I am an old man, and you 
must come soon.” 

His pathetic appeals were not long unan¬ 
swered. At that very time, the society in 
London was making arrangements to send re¬ 
enforcements to Mr. Shaw’s help, and very 
soon Lev. Mr. Archbell and wife were on 
their way, and arrived at Lily Fountain Mis¬ 
sion in July. Two weeks later they were joy¬ 
fully welcomed by the eager old Hottentot, 
and a new station was opened at Bushman- 
land, distant about two days’ travel from the 
station at Lily Fountain. 

In 1821 three other missionaries arrived, 
and the work grew more and more in favor 
with those who understood the message, and 
yet all was not as they desired. They were 
beset by dangers on every side; every time 
they moved to hunt game or water, or to seek 
other neighborhoods, they had to watch not 
only against the wild beasts of the forests, 


AFRICA, 


277 


lions and deadly serpents, but against the 
marauding parties of other tribes, as an al¬ 
most constant warfare was carried on between 
the different tribes. Some of the natives 
made wonderful progress in religious knowl¬ 
edge. Among these was Jacob Links, a con¬ 
verted Hottentot who proved to be a valuable 
assistant to the missionaries, and when the 
new force arrived he went with Mr. Arclibell 
to Great Nam aqua Land, while Messrs. Kay 
and Broadbent opened a station in Bechuana, 
and Mr. Hodgson obtained permission to re¬ 
main at the Cape and preach to the large 
number of slaves who were congregated 
there. 

In the meantime, William Shaw, a brother 
of Barnabas, had begun missionary work in 
Caffraria and Albany; then he was joined in 
1823 by Mr. Threlfall, a most devoted and 
pious young man, who pushed on still farther 
into the northwest with two native assistants, 
Jacob Links and Jonas Jager. They under¬ 
took this perilous journey in August, 1825, 
and all three were cruelly murdered by a 
roving band of savages. Mr. Threlfall had 
already endured many hardships, and once 
before, when he thought he was going to die, 
he wrote in his memorandum book a request 


278 


MISSION STUDIES. 


that his father would give his portion of the 
estate to the cause of Missions in South Afri¬ 
ca. His wish was granted, and his father 
presented to the missionary cause $8,000 in 
the name of his son, William Threlfall. 

In 1854 the growth of the Wesleyan Mis¬ 
sion seemed almost phenomenal. There were 
then twenty-one central stations, and more 
than 41,000 people attending public worship. 
At the present time the English Wesleyan 
Mission is still at work in this field, and has 
40 stations, 60 missionaries, and 6,000 Church 
members. 

The Society for the Propagation of the Gos¬ 
pel sent Bev. Mr. Wright to Cape Town in 
1820; in 1831 he was succeeded by Hey. Dr. 
Burrow; in 1851 the mission had extended to 
many different points, and churches, schools, 
and printing presses were doing a grand work. 

In 1820 the Glasgow Missionary Society 
also opened work in South Africa by sending 
Bev. Mr. Thompson as a missionary to the 
Kaffirs. Three years later he was reenforced 
by Bev. Mr. Boss and his wife. Good schools 
and a printing press were already in opera¬ 
tion, and as the chiefs of different tribes 
begged for teachers to give religious instruc¬ 
tion to their people, new churches and schools 


AFRICA. 


279 


were opened at many places, and the work 
prospered, notwithstanding the division that 
took place in the Church of Scotland in the 
year 1844; and at that time the missionaries 
of this Board were all placed in charge of the 
Free Church of Scotland. 

The French Protestant Mission began work 
in 1830, and in twenty years they had more 
than twelve thousand persons under religious 
instruction in thirteen different stations. 

About the same time, or perhaps three 
years later, the Berlin Missionary Society 
began work, and has prospered. 

The American Board sent to South Africa 
in 1834 a band of missionaries, with their 
wives and a physician, to establish work 
among the Zulus. They arrived at Cape Col¬ 
ony in February, 1835, and as soon as they 
could they proceeded one thousand miles into 
the interior, and established stations that be¬ 
came prosperous, until in 1851 they had 
twelve stations and nine churches, with an 
average attendance of eight hundred persons. 

The Rhenish Missionary Society began 
work in 1829, and in fifteen years they had 
twenty stations and more than one thousand 
six hundred communicants. And thus we find 
that from the beginning of this present cen- 


280 


MISSION STUDIES. 


tury, and before one-third of it liad passed, 
twelve well-organized missionary societies, and 
perhaps others, had engaged in active work 
in the South of Africa. These figures are not 
interesting in detail, but as representatives of 
work accomplished they are indeed wonder¬ 
ful. When we reflect on the nature of the 
country, its isolation from civilization, the 
density of its forests inhabited by ferocious 
animals, and the great extent of its plains 
and deserts, and think of the dreadful char¬ 
acter of its savage inhabitants, and the perils 
and privations to which the missionaries were 
subjected, it does not require a vivid imagina¬ 
tion to “read between the lines,” and ac¬ 
knowledge that no earthly sentiments could 
have been strong enough to conquer such ob¬ 
stacles, and no earthly power could have 
wrought such a change in the hearts of the 
people. 

Robert Moffatt seemed to be a connecting 
link between the first missionary efforts made 
in South Africa and the great opening of 
Darkest Africa by Livingstone and Stanley. 

We have already mentioned that the Lon¬ 
don Missionary Society sent Mr. Moffat to 
South Africa after Mr. Yanderkemp and oth¬ 
ers had opened work there in 1798. Mr. Mof- 


AFRICA. 


281 


fat reached Cape Colony in 1817, and for 
some time the governor would not allow him 
to proceed inland. His object was to go to 
the Orange River country beyond Namaqua 
Land, where Barnabas Shaw and other mis¬ 
sionaries were at work, and also to seek a 
chief named Africaner, who had at one time 
been the terror of the whole country, but aft¬ 
er his conversion became a most zealous and 
helpful Christian. He arrived in Africaner’s 
district, and was received with great joy, in 
1818. The next year he returned to Cape 
Town, and was married to Miss Mary Smith; 
and in 1820 he went back to Griqua Town, 
and was appointed to labor in Bechuana. He 
continued to open new work at different points, 
and translated portions of the Scriptures and 
hymns. In 1857 he completed the translation 
of the whole Bible into the Bechuana dialect. 
Sons and daughters grew up around him and 
assisted in missionary work, and in 1844 his 
oldest daughter was married to Dr. Living¬ 
stone. In 1870, enfeebled by age and work, 
Mr. Moffat returned to England, and Mrs. 
Moffat, who for more than half a century had 
been a sharer of his labors and trials, died in 
1871. Robert Moffat died in England, Au¬ 
gust 9, 1883. 


CHAPTER XIX. 


AFRICA (CONTINUED). 


T HERE is yet hope for Africa! ” This 
was Robert Moffat’s exclamation when 
scarcely a beginning in missionary work had 
been made on that vast and unexplored conti¬ 
nent. And now, after a lapse of over fifty 
years, with a knowledge of what Moffat him¬ 
self accomplished, and how his work was con¬ 
tinued and broadened and deepened by his 
son-in-law, David Livingstone, we may not 
only feel that “there is yet hope for Africa,” 
but we can see that 

Thy beams 

Suffuse the twilight of the nations. Light 
Wakes in the regions where gross darkness veiled 
The people. 

At the present time nearly all Christian na¬ 
tions of the earth are looking with increasing 
interest to Africa, and their representatives 
are in the north and the south, in the east 
and the west, and are penetrating the interior, 
and proclaiming “ the unsearchable riches of 
Christ.” 

( 282 ) 


AFRICA. 


283 


David Livingstone’s marvelous career in 
Africa lias brought to this generation through¬ 
out the Christian world a living, sympathetic 
interest in that country that no other man has 
ever been able to arouse; but this is not owing 
to his own personal efforts and influence, but 
largely to increased knowledge concerning the 
people gathered also from other explorers who 
have traversed its wildernesses, and to the in¬ 
tensified conviction of the Church in this 
nineteenth century that the heathen world 
can be saved only by the cooperation of Chris¬ 
tians with God, by becoming coworkers with 
him. 

In Livingstone’s life and journals very lit¬ 
tle is told of his w T ork that is distinctively mis¬ 
sionary, and yet it was a work indispensable 
to future missionaries. He wielded an un¬ 
bounded influence over the natives who accom¬ 
panied him in his travels, and by their help 
opened great highways of civilization between 
the eastern and western coasts, and through 
portions of Central Africa, where lighthouses 
of truth also were established among the nu¬ 
merous tribes with whom he came in contact. 
It may be that in some places and in some 
minds only a spark was left here and there, 
but it was ready to be touched by the Holy 


284 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Spirit, and “kindled into a flame of sacred 
love.” 

David Livingstone was born in Elan tyre, 
Scotland, March 19, 1813. With the first 
money that he earned, when ten years old, he 
bought a Latin grammar, and it is not surpris¬ 
ing to learn that he studied closely not only 
the Latin language, but the Greek and the 
sciences. Of himself he says: “Scientific 
works and books of travel were my delight.” 

When nineteen years of age he resolved to 
become a medical missionary, and intended to 
go to China at his own expense, but the “ Opi¬ 
um War” was raging at the time between En¬ 
gland and China, and he was therefore com¬ 
pelled to abandon that purpose. 

About that time Africa was made prominent 
as a mission field by Mr. Moffat, and young 
Livingstone offered his services to the London 
Missionary Society, and was accepted in 1838. 
He studied theology and medicine in London 
for two years, then on the 8th of December, 
1840, he set sail for Cape Town, in South Af¬ 
rica. He afterwards went into the interior to 
Kuruman, the station where Mr. Moffat and 
Mr. Hamilton were laboring. His first work 
was to make a thorough study of the language 
of the people among whom he had settled, 


AFRICA. 


285 


and for this purpose he held himself aloof as 
much as possible for six months from all Eu¬ 
ropeans. He studied not only the language 
of the Bakwains, a tribe of the Bechuanas, but 
their manners, customs, and opinions. 

In 1843 he decided to establish a mission 
station at Mabotsa. At this place he had an 
adventure with a ferocious lion that he and 
his men were trying to kill, when his arm was 
crushed and he barely escaped with his life. 

In 1844 he carried a bride to his mission 
home—Mary, the eldest daughter of Bobert 
Moffat. Afterwards he removed to another sta¬ 
tion, and three years later he was rewarded by 
the conversion to Christianity of Sechele, the 
chief of the Bakwain tribe. 

In 1848, after a long drought, he was com¬ 
pelled by the scarcity of water to seek a re¬ 
gion where it was more plentiful. Accom¬ 
panied by two English travelers, he went across 
the desert of Kalihari and reached a tribe 
friendly to white men. In June, 1857, he 
reached the Zambesi River, where he preached 
to the people and healed many that were sick. 
He then found it necessary to send his wife 
and children to England, and after seeing 
them embark at Cape Colony, he renewed his 
labors in searching for a healthful place 


286 


MISSION STUDIES. 


where he could establish a central mission 
station. 

His geographical discoveries as he jour¬ 
neyed to the western coast at Loanda were 
considered by the Royal Society in London 
of the greatest importance. He continued his 
travels back again to the eastern coast, and 
then into the wilds of the interior for more 
than eleven thousand miles. Worn out with 
these hazardous travels, he returned to En¬ 
gland in 1856, and was received with great 
honor by the London Missionary Society, the 
Royal Geographical Society, by the universi¬ 
ties of Oxford and Cambridge, and the people 
at large. He remained in England two years, 
and while there he wrote his “ Travels and Re¬ 
searches in South Africa. 1 ’ He then severed 
his connection with the London Missionary 
Society, and in 1858 “was appointed British 
Consul for Eastern Africa and the districts of 
the interior, and also leader of an expedition 
for exploring Eastern and Central Africa. He 
was accompanied by his brother Charles, Dr. 
Kirk, and others.” 

When he arrived at Cape Town, after an 
absence of two years, the authorities of the 
colony and the people received him with great 
rejoicing, “the governor presenting him with 


AFRICA. 287 

eight hundred guineas in a silver casket as a 
testimonial to the value of his services.” 

Early in the year of 1862 his wife returned 
to him from England, and died three months 
later. She was buried at Shupango, on the 
Zambesi River. 

Livingstone continued to explore the coun¬ 
try in all directions, and his discoveries were 
considered invaluable, until he was recalled to 
England. At this time he was requested to 
relinquish all missionary work and give his 
time exclusively to geographical explorations, 
but he would not consent to do so. He was 
then appointed by the Royal Geographical 
Society to ascertain the sources of the Nile 
among other things, and once again he re¬ 
turned to Africa. 

It is impossible to tell of his travels in the 
succeeding years until October, 1869, when, 
after unutterable hardships and difficulties 
and loss of nearly all his strength, he was car¬ 
ried by his faithful attendants to Ujiji. 

About the same time Henry M. Stanley was 
sent by the editor of the New York Herald to 
search for Livingstone, who had not been heard 
from for a long time, and there were many ru¬ 
mors and many fears that he was dead. Mr. 
Stanley reached Ujiji just five days after Liv- 


288 


MISSION STUDIES. 


ingstone’s arrival at that place, about the 24th 
of October, 1871. After resting two or three 
weeks he and Stanley proceeded northward to 
explore the country about Lake Tanganyika, 
and traveled together until March 14, 1872, 
when Mr. Stanley left and returned to En¬ 
gland. 

Livingstone had been much strengthened 
in health and spirits, and continued his jour¬ 
ney until in 1873 he was attacked by a most 
painful illness. As he grew weaker his attend¬ 
ants carried him in a kind of hammock to Ilala, 
on the south shore of Lake Bangweola. He 
grew worse rapidly, but wrote in his journal 
every day until he could do nothing more than 
write the dates from April 22 to April 27, but 
still guided his carriers and sent men in ad¬ 
vance to build a hut for him. When they 
reached the village, “ he was laid upon his bed 
of sticks and grass.” 

When visited by the chief next day, April 
30, he was very ill indeed, and the next day 
asked some questions about the locality, wound 
up his watch, called for some medicine, and 
then in a low, feeble voice spoke to Susi, say¬ 
ing: “All right; you can go out now.” 

About four o’clock in the morning, May 1, 
the lad who had been watching outside the 


AFRICA. 


289 


hut called again to Susi, and he quickly- 
brought in men, and when they went inside 
they saw him kneeling by the bedside. They 
stood back reverently, thinking that he was at 
prayer, but soon fearing the worst they 
touched him and found that he was dead. 
After much perplexed consultation his men 
decided to remove the remains to Zanzibar, 
and forward them to his friends in England. 
When we consider the great distance and the 
difficulties of such an undertaking, and re¬ 
member that he had given no directions con¬ 
cerning such an event, we are astonished that 
these natives should make such a decision and 
carry it out so faithfully. His heart and in¬ 
testines were removed and buried at that place 
(Ilala) and the remains preserved according 
to the custom of the natives for two or three 
weeks, and then these faithful servants began 
the long and desperate journey to the toAvn of 
Bagamoyo, on the coast, where they would find 
English ships. 

Among Livingstone’s faithful men, five de¬ 
serve especial mention: Susi, Chuma, and 
Amada, who had been with him since 1864; 
and Abram and Mabinki, who had served him 
since 1865. Others were John and Jacob 
Wainwright. As the latter could write, he 
19 


290 


MISSION STUDIES. 


was appointed to write an account of the Doc¬ 
tor’s death, and send it on to a party of Eng¬ 
lish that they had heard were coming, which 
proved to be Lieut. Cameron’s. 

The weary caravan pressed on under Susi 
and Chuma, and finally reached the end of 
their journey, where “they handed over the 
dead body of their leader to his countrymen;” 
and it was transported by ship to Zanzibar, 
about thirty miles distant, and then again 
to England, arriving there April 15, 1874. 
His body was deposited in Westminster Ab¬ 
bey, while his heart was resting at Ilala, in 
Africa. 

The name of Alexander Mackay is identified 
with missionary work in Africa, and especially 
in Uganda, which lies on the northwestern 
shores of the Lake Victoria Nyanza. The 
country now belongs to the British East Af¬ 
rica Company. As a child and youth Mackay 
was unusually precocious, and possessed all 
the advantages that could be given any one in 
education and in Christian example and op¬ 
portunities. His occupation as a cultivated 
and practical engineer fitted him well for the 
chosen work of his life. 

In 1875 he responded to an appeal from the 
Church Missionary Society for a practical 


AFRICA. 


291 


business man to go to Africa, but lie was not 
accepted until later in the year, as another 
man had been employed. 

He embarked for Africa in April, 1876, and 
reached Zanzibar in May, but did not reach 
Uganda until November, 1878. 

He had already learned the language, and 
had reduced it to writing. A writer said: “A 
new world was opened to the natives. They 
flocked to the mission premises, and often 
crowded Mackay’s workshop in their eager¬ 
ness to learn to read the Word of God, and as 
fast as they learned they taught others.” He 
had also constructed twenty-three miles of 
road to Mpwapw r a. When he reached Uganda, 
after a long and toilsome march, he was pre¬ 
pared to print portions of the Scriptures, and 
to instruct the king, Mtesa, and his people. 
His greatest regret at this time was that he 
was compelled to work so constantly at the 
printing press and in repairing tools that lit¬ 
tle time was left to teach the people. 

When he had been there one year, he wrote: 
“ Hosts of people come every day for instruc¬ 
tion, chiefly in reading.” 

It is said that “in 1882 five young men were 
baptized, and in 1884 the native church con¬ 
sisted of eighty-six njembers, including two 


292 


MISSION STUDIES. 


daughters and a granddaughter of the king.” 
That year, however, the friendly king Mtesa 
died, and was succeeded by his son, Mwanga, 
who was a weak man and was governed by 
those who had no desire nor respect for Chris¬ 
tianity. 

In 1882 he w T as much delighted and cheered 
by the arrival of Mr. O’Flaherty, and in 1888 
Rev. R. P. Ashe arrived. These w r ere trou¬ 
blous times; persecutions fell heavily on the 
young men who braved the anger of the 
king and became Christians. Some of these 
Christian boys in whom Mackay delighted 
were burned to death, singing: “Daily, daily 
sing the praises.” At this time Mr. Mackay 
wrote: “Our hearts are breaking; all our 
Christians dispersed. We are lonely and de¬ 
serted, sad and sick.” As these dangers in¬ 
creased “ the young lads flocked to the mission 
house in the darkness of the night, and many 
were baptized,” while others went boldly in 
the daytime, determined to face the dangerous 
consequences. 

These were times of great perplexity and 
danger to the three missionaries also, though 
the king was so capricious that he would take 
them to his favor, and then again they lived 
in the daily expectation of being murdered. 


AFRICA. 


293 


In 1886 two hundred and twenty-seven per¬ 
sons were received into the Church by bap¬ 
tism, and one night in July fifty converts as¬ 
sembled at midnight and elected two more 
elders. This was indeed a Church in a desert 
revived in the heart of Africa! 

In the meantime Mr. Ashe returned to En¬ 
gland. O’Flaherty had already gone eight 
months before, and Mackay was again left 
alone. Writing home, he said: “I am plod¬ 
ding on, teaching, translating, printing, doc¬ 
toring, and carpentering—a strange medley, 
but man was made to be like his Maker, who 
made not one kind of thing, but all things.” 

The Mohammedan Arabs were their chief 
persecutors, and finally, in 1887, they persuaded 
the king to expel Mackay from his dominions. 
He then removed in July to the southern part 
of the lake, and remained there three years, 
printing and teaching the gospel to the people, 
at the same time “ working at housebuilding, 
brickmaking, and the construction of a steam 
launch with which to navigate the lake.” 

Eev. E. C. Gordon, from the coast, took his 
place at the mission station in Uganda. 

Mr. Mackay opened a new station at Makolo, 
and went on busily with his printing, and sent 
many portions of the Scriptures back to Ugan- 


294 


MISSION STUDIES. 


da. Before the year closed six reenforcements 
arrived with Bishop Parker. 

Bishop Hannington was the first bishop 
who had visited this part of Africa, but he 
and his party had been cruelly massacred. 
At the earnest request of the King of Uganda, 
Mr. Mackay sent Bev. Mr. Walker to that 
station, and he was received with great cere¬ 
mony. 

Soon after this Mwanga was compelled to 
flee for his own life on account of his cruel¬ 
ties, and a new king was elected. Some time 
after he was restored to his throne, but was 
not allowed so much liberty. Messrs. Walker 
and Gordon were driven away from their mis¬ 
sion by the Mohammedans, and they remained 
with Mr. Mackay until they were recalled by 
the king. 

Then came wonderful news. The mission¬ 
aries were delighted to welcome Mr. Stanley, 
Emin Pasha, and their great caravan of friends 
and retainers, or native helpers, nearly one 
thousand in number. 

This was in August, 1889. The expedition re¬ 
in ained twenty days to rest, and then departed. 
Mr. Stanley and his officers urged Mackay to 
accompany them to Europe, but he felt that he 
could not leave his post until reenforcements 


AFRICA. 


295 


arrived. It is said that soon after this “his 
heart was gladdened that Christianity was 
again established in Uganda, and he sent 
home a ringing appeal to Christian England, 
saying that the “Continental idea o£ 4 every 
citizen a soldier ’ is the true watchword for 
Christian missions, for the King’s command 
is 4 GO YE,’ not SEND.” 

Later Mr. Mackay said: 44 Our people are 
most urgent that we should plant stations all 
over Uganda, not merely at the capital, and no 
one will hinder us if ice only had the men. The 
Roman Catholics have already sent five men, 
and many more will follow. Where is the great 
Church of England? and where is the greatest 
of missionary societies?” 

In February, 1890, about four months after 
Stanley’s departure, Mackay was prostrated on 
his bed, delirious with fever. On the 8th he 
died, and was buried by the side of Bishop 
Parker. 

Soon after this Bishop Tucker and his re- 
enforcements arrived, and the seed that had 
been so faithfully planted began to bear fruit. 

What of to-day in Uganda? and what are 
the signs of promise in all the vast Continent 
of Africa? On the 27th of December, 1890, 
eleven months after the death of Mr. Mackay, 


296 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Bishop Tucker and his associates reached the 
capital of Uganda, and were cordially received 
by the natives and by the two missionaries 
who had returned after the dreadful persecu¬ 
tions had ceased, Mr. Gordon and Mr. Walker. 

It was the Sabbath day, and one thousand 
persons had come together to hear the gospel. 
What a change since Mackay had been forced 
to leave! But some of the good seed he had 
planted was now bearing fruit. 

They had built a church, and the people 
were crowding into it. Bishop Tucker re¬ 
marked in regard to the people: “ It is a great 
feature of the work in Uganda that the people 
teach one another. There are numbers of 
Christians in the country who have learned 
to read, and have learned to know Christ, who 
have never been taught by any white man 
at all.” 

When Bishop Tucker left Uganda early in 
the year 1891, to return to the coast to em¬ 
bark for England, he said: “We marched 
down toward the place of embarkation, where 
we had our luggage. AVe were astir before 
sunrise. The purple blush of the dawn w T as 
brightening when there came on the stillness 
of the morning air a sound which stirred our 
souls to the very depth. What was it? Erom 


AFKICA. 


297 


some little distance, from a native hut which 
we could see dimly in the half light, there 
came a voice from one pleading with God in 
prayer, and then after awhile came the re¬ 
sponsive ‘amen’ of several voices; then a 
single voice was heard again, then another re¬ 
sponse; then all was silent and still.” These 
sounds he heard from hut to hut around him, 
and again he asked: “ What is the meaning of 
it?” The reply came: “Why, these are the 
voices of men and women—and mark it, Chris¬ 
tian men and women—engaged before sun¬ 
rise in family worship. They are men and 
women who only a few years ago were living 
in all the darkness of heathenism.” 

It is said that “at the present time there 
are more than two thousand devout worship¬ 
ers in Uganda, and nowhere in the annals of 
missionary history have converts stood better 
the repeated tests of fiery trials and persecu¬ 
tions of all kinds, many having suffered mar¬ 
tyrdom for the sake of Jesus Christ.” 

Bishop Turner returned from his second 
trip to Africa in June, 1892, and reported an 
encouraging growth in all the African Meth¬ 
odist Churches. Bishop Taylor also has 
opened new mission stations at different 
points, and the work is progressing. 


298 


MISSION STUDIES. 


In these brief sketches of missionary work 
in Africa we have now completed the circle, 
beginning in the order of time with missions 
in Abyssinia and Egypt and through the 
northern countries; then from Morocco, on 
the northwest corner, we dropped down the 
western coast to Senegambia; then still far¬ 
ther south to the region about Liberia; and 
still southward, touching lightly on the cen¬ 
tral portions the Congo, and then the extreme 
southern point—Cape Colony; the regions 
just north of the colony, where Shaw and 
Moffat labored; then to the east coast, Kaffir 
Laud, and north again to Uganda, south of 
Abyssinia. 

In an article in the Independent by Rev. Jo- 
siah Taylor, on the problem of the elevation 
of the aboriginal tribes of South Africa, he 
says: 

As the years roll on obstacles to the uplifting of the 
native clans in South Africa become less formidable. 
. . . Through the skillful management of Sir Cecil 
Rhodes, Great Britain now holds the protectorate and 
virtual control of an area embracing 750,000 square 
miles, equal to Germany, Italy, France, and Austria 
combined. \ . . In some parts of South Africa the 
lookout, so far as it regards the elevation of the native 
tribes, is our inspiring hope, and it should serve as an 
incentive to earnest prayer. 


AFRICA. 299 

Rev. Mr. Ashe, a missionary to Africa, wrote 
the following: 

Africa! what mighty grief 

Hidden lies in that sad name! 

Millions lost in unbelief, 

Steeped in blood and tears and shame! 

Christians, think of millions dying; 

Leave them not in darkness lying. 

After Alexander Mackay reached Africa he 
wrote: 

Our religion in England has not become the law of 
our daily life. I often think if I were in England how I 
would plead with Christian men and women to leave 
the fashions of the world, with the terrible expense 
which compliance with these involves, and consent to 
spend and be spent in rescuing a lost world. Has 
Christianity become such a half-hearted thing that the 
beginning and the end of it is a routine of worship and 
a putting on a respectable appearance in the eyes of the 
people? It is saddening to think of the lukewarmness 
of the very saints of God. If they fail in the hour of 
need, where is help to be looked for? May the Lord 
have mercy on our hardness of heart, and give us grace 
to devote ourselves and everything that is ours to his 
service alone. 

Bishop Tucker is still in Uganda, Africa, or 
w r as there a few months ago. Writing from 
Mengo, the capital of the State, he says in the 
Missionary Herald that “the journey inland 
had been accomplished safely, with no sick- 


800 


MISSION STUDIES. 


ness or accident. On Christmas Day the 
bishop preached in the new church to a con¬ 
gregation numbering over five thousand, the 
king and the great chiefs of the country be¬ 
ing present. Fourteen loads of books were 
brought in, containing eight thousand copies 
of portions of the Scriptures in Luganda, and 
the people were nearly beside themselves with 
delight at the prospect of receiving the books, 
which the bishop says were to be sold the next 
day, adding: ‘ They will go like a puff of smoke.’ 
He speaks of the country as safe, and gives 
his assurance that it cannot and will not be 
abandoned.” 

In a later number the editor says: 

Bishop Tucker, of the Church Missionary Society, 
has ordained at the capital of Uganda seven natives as 
deacons in the Christian Church, two of them being 
the greatest chiefs in the country, who govern large 
provinces. This ordination is a step toward the full 
establishment of Christian institutions in Uganda. 
Bishop Tucker speaks of the new church building as 
worthy of the name of cathedral. “ For Central Africa 
it is as wonderful a building as Durham Cathedral is 
for England.” There are nearly five hundred trees in 
it used for pillars; some of them were brought five or 
six days’ journey, and it required several hundred men 
for the task. 

The same encouraging reports come from 
all parts of the Dark Continent. 


CHAPTEB XX. 

SOUTH AMERICA. 



THIBD of the present century had passed 


before any attempt was made to estab¬ 
lish Protestant Missions in South America. 
In fact, until recent years, there has been 
some hesitation in the minds of many Chris¬ 
tians, resulting from the serious question 
whether it was necessary to found such mis¬ 
sions in papal lands while there were so many 
actual heathen in other countries who had 
never heard of the gospel nor of their Sav¬ 
iour, Jesus Christ. In these papal lands 
Christianity is acknowledged to be the pre¬ 
vailing religion, and any effort to introduce 
Protestantism will rightly be construed as 
direct opposition to the Boman Catholic 
Church. 

Protestant Churches are becoming more 
and more united on this question, and all 
such doubts and hesitation are being rapidly 
removed. "Wherever the Bible is withheld 
from the people, and the priesthood of the 


(301) 


802 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Eomisli Church is supreme in its authority 
and power over them, the need of the gospel 
seems as urgently imperative as in heathen 
lands, and Protestant Churches are not only 
awakening to this fact, but are making stren¬ 
uous efforts to supply this necessity. 

South America has a peculiar claim on the 
Christians of the United States—scarcely less 
than that of Mexico, which is a part of our 
own North American continent. It is a con¬ 
tinuation of our continent from Mexico, 
through Central America and fhe narrow 
Isthmus of Panama, until it opens wide into 
the South American continent; then, narrow¬ 
ing again, it extends to a point at the Straits 
of Magellan. 

Ten republics and three colonies are com¬ 
prised in this territory of South America. 
Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peri^ Chili, 
Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Argen¬ 
tine are the republics; wdiile Guiana is divid¬ 
ed between the British, French, and Dutch 
colonists, and though all religions are toler¬ 
ated, the Catholic prevails. 

The population of South America is more 
than thirty-five million, and of these more 
than three million are Indians, and about the 
same number are negroes, though there are 


SOUTH AMERICA. 303 

said to be unnumbered Indians in unexplored 
regions, that are uncivilized. 

In the year 1500 the Portuguese, and about 
the same time the Spanish, took possession of 
the country, and they now constitute the dom¬ 
inant races, with all the arts and refinements 
of civilized life on well-cultivated plantations 
and in magnificent cities, where there are fine 
public schools, large libraries, and the pub¬ 
lication of many newspapers and other peri¬ 
odicals. 

Columbus discovered the mainland of South 
America near the mouths of the Orinoco Riv¬ 
er in 1498, and Sebastian Cabot, Pizarro, Ma¬ 
gellan, and others carried their adventurous 
explorations still farther. The information 
gained by these expeditions turned a great 
tide of emigration from Southern Europe to 
South America, and thus the country was set¬ 
tled by the Latin race as North America was 
by the Saxon. As a consequence, in South 
America the Roman Catholic religion became 
the established faith, and so continued after 
every country had thrown off the Spanish or 
Portuguese yoke, and had proclaimed its in¬ 
dependence as a republic. The Empire of 
Brazil was the last one to declare its freedom, 
when the benignant and intelligent Dom Pe- 


304 


MISSION STUDIES. 


clro was driven from tlie throne in a bloodless 
revolution. In each of the republics at the 
present time all religions are tolerated except 
in Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru, where the 
public exercises of any other religion than 
the Homan Catholic is prohibited by the 
Constitution of the State. 

The only key that will unlock the doors of 
any Catholic, Mohammedan, or heathen coun¬ 
try, and open them to Christianity, is the liv¬ 
ing Word of the living God. The American 
Bible Society, has long been using this key in 
all parts of South America where sufficient 
funds have been provided for this purpose. 
These funds are collected by contributions to 
the society, and by the sale of the Bible, 
translated into the desired language. An 
agency of the American Bible Society was 
established in 1864, and Mr. Andrew M. 
Milne was appointed General Agent of the 
Society in South America. ' Some work of 
this kind had been done from 1836 up to that 
time. In 1888 Rev. William M. Patterson, an 
experienced missionary of the Methodist Epis¬ 
copal Church, South, in Mexico, was appointed 
Agent of the Bible Society for Venezuela, 
where, after sixteen months of faithful work, 
he fell at his post. Rev. Joseph Norwood, 


SOUTH AMERICA. 


305 


also of our Church, from Mexico, succeeded 
him iu 1891, and is now stationed at Caraccas. 
Rev. H. C. Tucker, of our Brazil Mission, is 
now Agent of the American Bible Society in 
Brazil, with colporters to aid him in the dis¬ 
semination of the Scriptures. 

No one can estimate the good that has been 
done in this broadcast circulation of the Best 
of all Books, because, like the prayers cf 
Christians, they are among the hidden sources 
of success in all missionary work. The peo¬ 
ple, as a rule, are glad and eager to purchase 
the Bible; and if it were not suppressed by 
the priests, the gospel would soon have free 
course all through the land. 

An attempt to evangelize the people of Bra¬ 
zil was made in 1555 by Coligny, the celebra¬ 
ted French Huguenot, and others who were anx¬ 
ious to escape the fury of the Roman Catholics 
in Europe soon after the close of the Reforma¬ 
tion. They determined to establish a colony 
in South America as a place of refuge from 
persecution, but the leader of the expedition 
proved treacherous, and the whole venture, as 
far as human eyes can see, was a failure. 
Some of the colonists returned to Europe, 
many died, and one of their number, John 
Boles, who preached boldly and faithfully, 
20 


306 


MISSION STUDIES. 


was put to death on the place where the city 
of Rio de Janeiro now stands. Some other 
attempts were made by the Dutch, but with 
no permanent results. 

In more modern times the first effort to es¬ 
tablish a mission in South America was made 
in 1834, when “an invitation was received 
from a few pious persons, English colonists, 
in Buenos Ayres, capital of Argentine, and in 
the hope of being useful to the Protestants of 
that city, and of gaining a foothold in that 
land of unmitigated Romanism,” the Mission¬ 
ary Board of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
“resolved to obey the call.” Rev. Fountain 
E. Pitts, of the Tennessee Conference, then 
living in Nashville, Tenn., was, according to 
this resolution, sent to Buenos Ayres and to 
Rio de Janeiro to make a beginning, to exam¬ 
ine the situation and report to the Church; 
he returned to the United States, and one 
year later Rev. John Dempster was sent to 
Buenos Ayres. A church and parsonage were 
built, and a good congregation attended pub¬ 
lic worship. After both of these gentlemen 
had returned to the United States, Rev. Dr. 
P. Kidder and Rev. J. Spaulding were sent to 
reenforce the mission in 1837. Later Rev. J. 
C. Fletcher was sent to Brazil, and in 1852-53, 


SOUTH AMERICA. 


307 


by reason of his official position as Secretary 
of the United States Legation at Rio, he 
possessed unusually good opportunities for 
reaching the higher classes of the people, and 
it is said that he did good work, which has 
continued to grow until the present time. 

Bishop Walden, of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church (North), when speaking of what is 
called the Spanish work, which was inaugura¬ 
ted by Dr. Goodfellow and continued by Rev. 
J. F. Thompson, as preparatory to true mis¬ 
sionary work, said: “It has been the key to 
open the native door in Argentine, Uruguay, 
and Paraguay, so it will be to every Spanish 
State in that continent. . . . The whole period 
down to 1880 was largely preparatory. Not 
only were converts gathered from the Latin 
and native races, but some of them were 
moved to preach and became efficient helpers. 
During this period the work of the Homans 
Foreign Missionary Society was opened, and 
the whole mission became fairly well equipped 
for aggressive effort.” This society has suc¬ 
cessful work in several cities of different re¬ 
publics, notably in Buenos Ayres, Rosario, 
Montevideo, and Sao Paulo. The work of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church is perhaps 
more extensive and prosperous than that of 


308 


MISSION STUDIES. 


any other Protestant Church in South Amer¬ 
ica. Bishop Taylor, of the same Church, has 
founded independent, or what he calls self- 
supporting, stations in South America, 

In 1844 a mission was opened in Patagonia, 
the extreme southern peninsula of South 
America, and included in Argentine; Capt. 
Allen Gardener was the first missionary, and 
was sent out by the Church of England Soci¬ 
ety. It is said “ he compassed half the con¬ 
tinent to get a foothold, settling down on the 
inhospitable islands about Cape Horn, ’where 
he perished, a martyr to his zeal.” After la¬ 
boring without any visible results for three 
years, he died of starvation. 

He lit the lamp, and then be died; 

He sang the song with tears; 

He lit the lamp, and bright it shines, 

Touched by the Day-star’s flame; 

And those who see, and those who walk, 

Thank God that Gardener came. 

His son, Rev. Allen Gardener, not deterred 
by the distressing fate of his father, began a 
mission at Loli, in Chili, in 1861, supported 
by the same society. 

Dr. Kalley was an able and zealous mis¬ 
sionary from Scotland to Brazil, where he 
spent the best years of a long life founding 
and building up churches. 


SOUTH AMERICA. 


309 


The Presbyterian Church, North, has mis¬ 
sions in Brazil, Chili, and Colombia, and the 
Presbyterian Church, South, has prosperous 
work in Brazil. 

The Southern Baptist Convention, the 
South American Missionary Society of Lon¬ 
don, the Moravians, the Wesleyans, the Soci¬ 
ety for the Propagation of the Gospel, and 
English Baptists are ail doing what they can 
to spread the knowledge of the gospel in 
South America, while our own Methodist 
Episcopal Church, South, is not the least 
prosperous in her growing work in Brazil. 

In 1875 the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South, through its General Board of Missions, 
decided to open a mission in Brazil. 

Rev. J. E. Newman had removed to Brazil 
soon after the close of the war in the United 
States, and had organized a church in Santa 
Barbara with a membership of English-speak¬ 
ing people; he was recognized by the Board 
as a missionary, and early in the following 
year Rev. J. J. Ransom was sent to Brazil, 
arriving in Rio Janeiro in February, 1876. 
After acquiring the language, he opened a 
mission station in Rio Janeiro in January, 
1877. 

For five years Messrs Newman and Ransom 


310 


MISSION STUDIES. 


devoted their best energies to building a firm 
foundation for the mission, and were success¬ 
ful. 

In March, 1881, Rev. J. W. Koger, of the 
South Carolina Conference, and wife, and Rev. 
J. L. Kennedy, of the Holston Conference, 
were sent as reenforcements, and arrived in 
Rio May 16, 1881. 

Miss Watts, the first representative of the 
Woman’s Board, accompanied them, and 
opened a boarding school in Piracicaba. 

The work continued to grow until Septem¬ 
ber, 1886, when an Annual Conference was or¬ 
ganized by Bishop Granbery with only three 
members. Rev. Mr. Koger had died, Rev. 
Mr. Ransom had returned to the United 
States, and the mission had been reenforced 
by the arrival of Rev. J. W. Tarboux in 1883, 
and in 1886 by Rev. H. C. Tucker, while Rev. 
Mr. Newman continued to preach to his 
American congregations on Santa Barbara 
Circuit. 

When the sixth Annual Conference was 
held, eleven years after the beginning of the 
mission, there were 11 foreign missionaries, 
8 preachers on trial, and 528 members; there 
were 10 Sunday schools, with 333 scholars. 

The Granbery College had been founded 


SOUTH AMERICA. 


311 


and a boarding school also at Taubate, both 
adding to the strength of the work. In that 
year (1891) $5,500 was contributed by the 
members. Church and other property was 
valued at $71,876. The work of the Woman’s 
Board of this Church had increased from the 
one school, founded in 1882 by Miss Watts 
in Piracicaba with a limited number of pu¬ 
pils, to a large, well-built college, filled with 
pupils in every department. At the present 
time there is another boarding school at Juis 
de Fora, and one day school at Bio de Janei¬ 
ro. Two hundred and forty-two pupils are in 
attendance, and nine missionaries occupy the 
mission. Work has been projected in Petrop- 
olis which will be established as soon as 
practicable. 

To give a detailed account of the work done 
by all these Churches in the various repub¬ 
lics, on the Pacific Coast, and east of the 
great mountain range of the Andes, would 
fill many volumes; and yet how much of this 
great land is still untouched by Protestant in¬ 
fluence! 


CHAPTER XXL 


MEXICO. 



EFORE giving a sketch of the missionary 


work that has been accomplished by the 
Protestant Churches in Mexico, it may be in¬ 
teresting to glance into the shadowy history 
of the earliest ages of that peculiar and beau¬ 
tiful country. 

Mexico, as now bounded, is in the form of 
an immense cornucopia, or horn of plenty, 
as some one has said, with its large end, filled 
with rich flowers and tropical fruits, opening 
toward the United States. To the thoughtful 
mind this is suggestive of a mute appeal to 
exchange what they have in the greatest 
abundance for the spiritual blessings which 
they do not possess. 

Lying southward of the States and Territo¬ 
ries, and circling round the western part of 
the Gulf of Mexico, it bears a close relation 
to our own country— the relation of contigui¬ 
ty, at least, and as a part of the same conti¬ 
nent. As it is now intersected by railways in 


MEXICO. 


313 


every direction, and as commercial pursuits 
Lave carried many Americans to reside with¬ 
in its territorial limits, the estrangement 
caused by the difference in manners, customs, 
language, and government, as well as that 
produced by the war between the two coun¬ 
tries, which gave Texas and New Mexico to 
the United States—this estrangement is grad¬ 
ually wearing away. 

Little is known of the primitive races of 
Mexico, and still less of whence they came. 
It is said that in the seventh century—about 
the year 648 after Christ—a race of people 
w T ho came from the north, called Toltecs, set¬ 
tled in a part of Mexico situated between the 
14th and 21st degrees of latitude, which was 
called Anahuac. They were said to be well 
“instructed in agriculture and many of the 
most useful mechanic arts, were nice workers 
of metals, . . . and in short were the 

true fountains of the civilization which dis¬ 
tinguished this part of the continent in later 
times.” Four hundred years after their ar¬ 
rival the Toltecs abandoned the country, be¬ 
cause of famine, pestilence, and unsuccessful 
wars, and “disappeared from the land as si¬ 
lently and mysteriously as they had entered 
it.” 


314 


MISSION STUDIES. 


More than a hundred years after the Tol- 
tecs had deserted that part of Mexico, other 
tribes and races came from the northwest, 
the most noted of whom were the Aztecs, or 
Mexicans. They were finally established as 
the ruling people, and in the year 1325 the 
City of Mexico was founded. For an account 
of the Aztec civilization and religions, read¬ 
ers are referred to Prescott’s “Conquest of 
Mexico;” also to those volumes for an ac¬ 
count of the discovery of Mexico under Cor¬ 
tes, in the reign of Charles V. of Spain. 

The approach of Cortes and his army to 
the capital city of Mexico, on the 8tli of No¬ 
vember, 1519; their hospitable and magnifi¬ 
cent reception by the gentle and generous 
emperor, Montezuma, who loaded them with 
gold and jewels; the after treachery of Cortes 
in taking Montezuma prisoner, and his forced 
allegiance to the Spanish Government—all 
these, concluding with the. death of Montezu¬ 
ma on the 30th of June, 1520, took place in 
less than one year. 

The exasperation and rising of the Aztecs 
delayed the final establishment of the Span¬ 
ish Government in Mexico for one or two 
years longer, and then the Pom an Catholic 
religion was formally introduced in 1524 by 


MEXICO. 


315 


the arrival of twelve priests of “ unblem¬ 
ished purity of life.” These Christian mis¬ 
sionaries, it is said, lost no time in opening 
schools, founding colleges, and preaching the 
truths of Christianity to a people whose re¬ 
ligion was characterized by the sacrifice of 
human beings on their altars. 

In the three centuries that followed, Chris¬ 
tianity declined, and “the nation came under 
the thrall ” of the Roman Church. During all 
these years, it is said, “ the priests of Mexico 
were in touch with the priesthood of Spain in 
the palmy days of the Inquisition,” but in the 
beginning of the nineteenth century light be¬ 
gan to dawn. The Spanish yoke was thrown 
off, and in 1823 a republican form of govern¬ 
ment was declared, but no form of religion 
■was tolerated except the Roman Catholic un¬ 
til the year 1857, when a proclamation of re¬ 
ligious liberty was made, and all Church 
property was confiscated. Ten years before 
this proclamation was issued, in the war be¬ 
tween the United States and Mexico, “the 
Bible, a stranger in a strange land, was borne 
into Mexico by Gen. Scott’s army;” and yet 
it was only a little leaven scattered about as 
seed by the wayside. 

After the effort of the French to establish 


316 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Maximilian as Emperor of Mexico, in 1867, 
and tlieir terrible defeat, the republic was more 
firmly established under Juarez, and the re¬ 
ligious liberty that had been proclaimed ten 
years before now became a reality. 

In the meantime Texas had been ceded to 
the United States, and in 1854 Miss Melinda 
Rankin began missionary work in Browns¬ 
ville, Tex., so lately Mexican soil, and in 1860 
Rev. Mr. Thompson was appointed Agent of 
the American Bible Society at the same ,place, 
and thus the true germs of missionary work 
were planted, and began to grow. 

Miss Rankin established a school in Mon¬ 
terey, Mexico, in 1866. The leaven continued 
to spread in this undenominational work un¬ 
til in 1869, by the influence of Miss Rankin, 
Rev. H. A. Riley went as a missionary to the 
City of Mexico, and the work was greatly 
aided by the cooperation of some “prominent 
priests, who openly avowed their renunciation 
of the Roman Catholic dogmas and corrup¬ 
tions,” a Church was organized as the Church 
of Jesus. Twenty-nine mission stations were 
reported two years ago, with more than two 
thousand members, and in the schools near¬ 
ly two hundred pupils. The Presbyterian 
Church (North) sent three men and four 


MEXICO. 


317 


women in 1872, and stations were opened in 
San Luis Potosi and Zacatecas, and in 1873 
Rev. Mr. Hutchinson and wife began work in 
the City of Mexico. 

In succeeding years other missionaries 
were sent to different points. The work be¬ 
gun by Miss Melinda Rankin at Monterey 
was turned over to the American Board of 
Foreign Missions, and removed to Saltillo, 
then subsequently transferred to the Presby¬ 
terian Board, and has been extended into 
twelve States, with ninety churches, many 
members, schools, and a printing press. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church began a 
mission in the City of Mexico in 1873, and at 
other important points, until in 1890 they had 
established work on a strong and permanent 
basis in eight different States. 

In the same year (1873) the Methodist Epis¬ 
copal Church, South, opened work in the City 
of Mexico, “under the general direction of 
Bishop Keener.” Ale jo Hernandez, an intelli¬ 
gent Mexican, was arrested in his infidelity by 
reading a book called “ Evenings with the Ro¬ 
manists.” He went to Brownsville, Tex., where 
there was a mission station, to inquire what was 
meant by Protestantism. He was convinced of 
“ the truth as it is in Jesus,” and was admitted 


318 


MISSION STUDIES. 


into tlie Methodist Episcopal Church, South. 
In 1871 he was received on trial as a minister 
of the gospel, and appointed to Laredo. This 
was the beginning of the w x ork opened in the 
City of Mexico in 1873 by Bishop Keener. 
Bev. J. T. Daves was appointed the same year 
to Mexico, and the work steadily progressed 
under him and the native preachers who be¬ 
came his helpers, until in February, 1878, 
Bev. William M. Patterson was sent; and it 
is said this appointment “marked a new era” 
in the movement of the mission. 

In this year of our Lord 1894 there are 10 
missionaries, 78 native preachers, 6,801 mem¬ 
bers, 147 Sunday schools with 3,930 scholars, 
and 51 churches. 

In the year 1874 the American Board Mis¬ 
sion was opened, and its first missionary, Mr. 
Stephens, "was killed by a furious Catholic 
mob. A strong mission has grown, and now 
they have 16 missionaries and 10 churches, 
besides schools and pupils. 

The Southern Baptist Convention, the 
Southern Presbyterian Church, the Society of 
Friends, the Associate Beformed Synod, have 
all established growing missionary work in 
Mexico. It is stated by good authority that 
there were in 1890, of all denominations 


MEXICO. 


319 


working in Mexico, 150 foreign Protestant 
missionaries, 360 native laborers, 400 congre¬ 
gations, 15,000 communicants, 4,000 pupils in 
schools, and 6,000 Sunday school pupils. 

The Woman’s Board of Missions of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, South, opened 
work in Mexico in 1881. There are at the pres¬ 
ent time (August, 1894) 13 missionaries, 6 
boarding schools and 4 day schools, with 1,217 
pupils and 11 native helpers. The work is 
prosperous and harmonious in all the different 
stations: at Laredo, on the border; and at Sal¬ 
tillo, San Luis Potosi, Chihuahua, Durango, 
and Guadalajara. The property owned by the 
Woman’s Board in this Mexican work is, at 
the lowest estimate, valued at $105,000. 


CHAPTER XXII. ' 


CONCLUSION. 


S a conclusion to this review of Protes- 



tant Missions, which claims to sketch 
only the beginnings and the more prominent 
progress of the work, especially in heathen 
lands, a list is appended, of the dates of im¬ 
portant events in modern Missions. It was 
written by Rev. J. L. Ross, M.A., and is 
copied from the Methodist Magazine . 

A Century of Modern Mission Chronology. 

1792. The first British Foreign Missionary 
Society organized through the efforts of Ca¬ 
rey. 

1793. Carey lauded in India. 

1795. London Missionary Society organ¬ 
ized. 

1796. First mission of the London Mission¬ 
ary Society opened at Tahiti, Society Islands. 

1798. Death of Schwartz. 

1799. Dr. Vauderkemp (London Missionary 
Society) opened mission to Kaffirs in South 
Africa. 


( 320 ) 


CONCLUSION. 


321 


1804. British and Foreign Bible Society or¬ 
ganized. 

Mission to Sierra Leone opened. 

1807. Morrison (London Missionary Socie¬ 
ty), first missionary to China. 

Slave trade in British dominions abolished 
by Parliament. 

1810. American Board of Commissioners for 
Foreign Missions organized. 

1812. Church Missionary Society organized 
(in 1799 organized under another name). 

Wesleyan Mission to South Africa opened. 

1813. East India Company compelled by 
Parliament to tolerate missionaries. 

Judson arrived at Rangoon, Burmah. 

1814. American Baptist Missionary Society 
organized. 

Mission to New Zealand opened by Church 
Missionary Society. 

Death of Dr. Coke, on Indian Ocean, aged 
sixty-seven. 

1816. The American Bible Society organ¬ 
ized. 

Moffat sailed for Africa. 

1817. Wesleyan Missionary Society organ¬ 
ized. 

1818. Conversion under Moffat of Africaner, 
“ the terror of South Africa ’ 

21 


322 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Madagascar Mission opened (London Mis¬ 
sionary Society). 

Death of Samuel J. Mills, off west coast of 
Africa, the originator of the American Board 
of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, and 
of the American Bible Society. 

1819. Missionary Society of Methodist Epis¬ 
copal Church (United States) organized. 

First Christian book printed in Siamese. 

Whole of Bible translated into Chinese by 
Morrison, assisted by Milne. 

1820. Mission to Hawaiian Islands opened. 

1821. Mission to Liberia opened. 

1822. Missions to Tonga Islands and to New 
Zealand opened by the Wesleyan Missionary 
Society. 

1823. Baratonga Island, which had eluded 
the search of Cai3t. Cook, discovered by John 
Williams, and mission opened. 

1824. Missionary Society of the Methodist 
Church of Canada organized; also that of the 
Protestant Episcopal Church of America, and 
that of France. 

1826. Mission to the Karens (“wild men of 
Burmah”) commenced. 

1828. First Karen convert. 

1829. Widow burning abolished by the Brit¬ 
ish Government in India. 


CONCLUSION. 


323 


1830. Duff arrived in India. 

1833. Slavery abolished in the British Em¬ 
pire (went into operation August 1, 1834). 

First foreign mission of the Methodist Epis¬ 
copal Church of the United States to Liberia 
commenced. 

Death of Melville B. Cox, first foreign mis¬ 
sionary of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
United States. 

1834. Death of Carey, “ the pioneer of mod¬ 
ern missions.” 

Death of Morrison, “ the pioneer missionary 
to China.” 

1835. Mission to the Fiji Islands, opened by 
the Wesleyan missionaries, Cross and Car¬ 
gill. 

1836. Missionaries banished from Madagas¬ 
car. 

1837. First native Madagascar martyr. 

Krapf set out for East Africa. 

1839. John Williams, “the apostle of Poly¬ 
nesia,” murdered at Erromanga, aged forty- 
four. 

1840. Livingstone sails for Africa. 

Canton, China, taken by the English. 

1842. Hong Kong ceded to the English; 

Canton and four cities opened. 

1844. Missions to China reopened. 


324 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Missionary Society of the Presbyterian 
Church in Canada organized. 

1845. Evangelical Alliance organized. 

1846. Death of James Evans, Canadian 
Methodist missionary and inventor of the syl¬ 
labic characters. 

1848. Mission to the New Hebrides Islands 
commenced by Dr. Geddie, of the Presbyte¬ 
rian Church, Nova Scotia. 

1850. Missionary Society organized by the 
New Zealanders. 

Death of Judson, “the apostle of Burmah.” 

1851. First zenana teaching in the East be¬ 
gun in Siam. 

1853. Missionary Society organized by Sand¬ 
wich Islanders. 

Wesleyan Mission in China opened. 

Commodore Perry (United States) sails into 
Yeddo Bay, Japan. 

1858. Japan opened by Townsend Harris 
Treaty to the Western World, after being- 
closed two hundred and nineteen years (treaty 
went into full operation the following year). 

Christianity tolerated in China by the Trea¬ 
ty of Tientsin (carried into effect in 1860). 

Government of East India Company abol¬ 
ished by British Parliament. 

1859. First missionary in Japan. 


CONCLUSION. 325 

1861. Persecution in Madagascar ceased 
and mission reopened. 

1862. Jesuits enter Madagascar. 

King George of Congo gave a constitutional 
government founded on Christian princi¬ 
ples. 

1864. First convert in Japan. 

1865. China Inland Mission commenced. 

1870. Missionaries to Hawaiian Islands 
made last report to their society, these islands 
having ceased to be missionary ground. 

1871. First Protestant Church opened in 
Pome. 

Bishop Patteson, of Melanesian Islands, 
murdered at Nukapu. 

Mission to New Guinea opened (largest is¬ 
land in the world). 

Livingstone found by Stanley at XJjiji. 

1872. First Protestant Church organized in 
Japan. 

Mission to Formosa, China, opened by Pres¬ 
byterian Church in Canada. 

1873. Livingstone found dead at his bedside 
on his knees at Ilala, Lake Bangweola. 

Canadian Baptist Missionary Society organ¬ 
ized. 

First foreign mission of Methodist Church 
of Canada commenced in Japan. 



326 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Edict against Christianity in Japan taken 
down. 

1874. Livingstone buried in Westminster 
Abbey. 

Fiji Islands ceded by their chiefs to Great 
Britain. 

1875. King Mtesa desired missionary teach¬ 
ers to be sent to Uganda, East Africa. 

Presbyterian Church in Canada opened a 
mission in Central India. 

1876. Mission to Uganda commenced. 

Woman’s Presbyterian Missionary Society 

of Canada organized. 

1877. Stanley’s journey across Africa from 
Zanzibar, and emerging at the mouth of the 
Congo, seven thousand miles, completed in 
nine hundred and ninety-nine days. 

1878. Missions to Congo opened. 

Great revival at the Baptist Mission among 
the Telugus (“ Lone Star Mission ”): ten thou¬ 
sand baptized between June and December. 

Consecration of the great Memorial Hall by 
the Karens on the fiftieth anniversary of the 
first convert. 

Buddhist temple in Province of Shantung, 
China, deeded as a free gift to missionaries for 
Christian uses. 

Death of Dr. Di*ff, aged seventy-two. 


CONCLUSION. 827 

1881. Woman’s Methodist Missionary So¬ 
ciety of Canada organized. 

Canada Congregational Missionary Society 
organized. 

1882. Corea, “ the hermit nation,” the latest 
opened to the gospel. 

1883. Death of Moffat. 

Church of England Missionary Society in 
Canada organized. 

1884. Stanley opened the Congo basin; five 
thousand two hundred and forty-nine miles of 
navigable rivers; eleven million square miles 
of territory; inhabited by forty-three millions 
of people. 

Berlin Conference for government of the 
Congo country, agreement signed by fifteen 
ruling powers. 

1885. Congo Free State erected. 

Bishop Hannington murdered at Uganda by 
orders of Mwanga. 

1888. First railroad built in China with 
sanction of the government. 

First mission of the Presbyterian Church in 
Canada to China mainland opened. 

Whole Bible translated into Japanese. 

1890. Memorable Missionary Conference at 
Shanghai, China. 


328 


MISSION STUDIES. 


Sultan of Zanzibar issued decree against the 
slave trade. 

Death of Maekay, of Uganda. 

1891. Susi, who brought Livingstone’s body 
and papers to the coast, a journey of nearly 
one thousand miles, and of a year’s duration, 
died at Zanzibar. 

Edict of Chinese Emperor proclaiming tol¬ 
eration of Christianity. 

First section of Congo Biver railroad com¬ 
pleted. 

Latest new mission, in totally unoccupied 
territory, undertaken—the Central Soudan. 

Death of Samuel Crowther. “ Born a slave, 
died a bishop.” 

1892. Death of James Calvert, noted mis¬ 
sionary to Fiji. 

The Brussels Treaty respecting the prohibi¬ 
tion of the slave trade, firearms, and the liquor 
traffic in the Congo Free State and interior of 
Africa, covering an area twice the size of Eu¬ 
rope, with a population of twenty-seven mil¬ 
lions of souls, signed by seventeen powers. 

Mission opened in a populous but unevan¬ 
gelized province of China by the Methodist 
Church, Canada. 


THE END. 


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